John  Swett 


EDUCATinM  r 


Q 


-  • 


i\ 


Baby  and  Chickens. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  SERIES— BOOK  SECOND. 


FEIENDS  IN 

FEATHERS  AND  EUR, 


AND 


OTHER    NEIGHBORS, 


FOR    YOUNG  FOLKS. 


BY  JAMES  JOHONNOT. 


NEW  YORK: 
D.    APPLETON    AND     COMPANY 

1885. 


GOOD-MOENING  !  good-morning  !  the  birdies  sing ; 
Good-by  to  the  windy  days  of  spring ! 
The  sun  is  so  bright,  that  we  must  be  gay  ! 
Good-morning !  good-morning !  this  glad  summer 
day. 


COPTKIGHT,    1884, 

BY  D.  APPLETON  AND   COMPANY. 


EDUCATION 


THE   AIM  AND   METHOD. 


A  MACHINE,  turned  by  a  crank, 
has  been  made  to  speak  words,  but 
nothing  below  a  human  being  has 
been  able  to  get  thought  from  a 
written  or  printed  page  and  convey 
it  to  others.  To  make  the  machine 
requires  a  vast  amount  of  labor 
expended  upon  matter ;  to  get  the 
thought  requires  the  awakening  of  a 
human  spirit.  The  work  of  the  ma- 
chine is  done  when  the  crank  stops ; 
the  mental  work,  through  internal  volition,  goes 
on  to  ever  higher  achievements. 

In  schools  much  labor  has  been  spent  in  trying 
to  produce  human  speaking-machines.  Words  are 
built  up  out  of  letters ;  short  words  are  grouped 
into  inane  sentences  such  as  are  never  used ;  and 
sentences  are  arranged  into  unnatural  and  insipid 
discourse.  To  grasp  the  thin  ghost  of  the  thought, 
the  little  human  spirit  must  reverse  its  instinct  to 
reach  toward  the  higher,  and,  mole-like,  burrow 
downward. 


54.1:152 


6  THE    AIM    AND     METHOD.—  (Contin 


The  amount  of  effort  spent  in  this  way,  if  given 
to  awakening  thought,  would  much  more  effective- 
ly secure  the  mechanical  ends  sought,  and  at  the 
same  time  would  yield  fruit  in  other  fields  of 
mental  activity. 

The  matter  selected  for  these  higher  and  bet- 
ter purposes  must  possess  a  human  interest.  The 
thoughts  that  bear  fruit  are  those  with  roots  set 
in  past  experiences,  but  which,  outgrowing  these 
experiences,  reach  out  toward  new  light. 

In  this  little  book  we  have  again  given  the 
initial  steps  of  science  rather  than  the  expression 
of  scientific  results.  Beginning  with  familiar 
forms  of  life,  the  pupil  is  led  to  see  more  clearly 
that  which  is  about  him,  and  then  to  advance  into 
the  realm  of  the  unknown  with  assured  steps,  in 
the  tried  paths  of  investigation  and  comparison. 

While  giving  prominence  to  the  facts  that  in- 
form, we  have  not  been  unmindful  of  the  fancy 
that  stimulates.  The  steady  flow  of  description 
is  frequently  interrupted  by  the  ripple  of  story 
and  verse.  While  we  have  made  no  effort  to  se- 
cure the  favor  of  Mr.  Gradgrind  by  looking  at 
facts  only  on  their  lower  side,  we  trust  that  our 
effort  may  prove  of  some  service  in  the  anxious 
work  of  parent  and  teacher. 


XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 

XVI. 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 


LESSON  PAGE 

I.  How  Fowls  Look 11 

II.  What  Fowls  Do 15 

III.  Chickens'  Ways 18 

IV.  Stories  about  Chickens 20 

V.  How  Ducks  Look  and  Live  ...    25 

VI.  Stories  about  Ducks 27 

VII.  How  Geese  Look  and  Live 30 

VIII.  How  Geese  Behave 32 

IX.  What  Geese  can  Do 35 

X.  About  Turkeys 37 

XI.  About  Swans 39 

XII.  Doves  and  Pigeons 42 

Three  Little  Doves 45 

The  Little  Wren 47 

The  Singing  Thrush 49 

Robin-Redbreast 51 

The  Blackbird  and  the  Cat 54 

How  Canaries  Live  and  Sing 56 

A  Song  of  Summer 58 

How  Parrots  Look  and  Talk 60 

Stories  about  Parrots 63 

Birds  of  Prey 67 

Long  Legs  with  Feathers 70 


8  CONTENTS.-- (Continued.) 


LESSON  PAGE 

XXIII.  Bo-peep  and  the  Rook 72 

XXIV.  The  Mouse  and  its  Ways 74 

XXV.  Stories  about  Mice 76 

XXVI.  White-paw  Starts  to  see  the  World 78 

XXVII.  What  the  Mice  Saw  in  the  Farm- Yard 80 

XXVIII.  What  White-paw  Saw  in  the  Kitchen 83 

XXIX.  White-paw's  Account  of  the  Great  World 85 

XXX.  The  Death  of  Poor  Puss 87 

XXXI.  Field-Mice 89 

XXXII.  How  the  Rat  Looks  and  Lives 91 

XXXIII.  Stories  about  the  Rat 93 

XXXIV.  About  Rabbits 96 

XXXV.  More  about  Rabbits 98 

XXXVI.  How  the  Hare  Lives 101 

Alice's  Bunny 103 

XXXVII.  Something  about  Squirrels 104 

XXXVIII.  More  about  Squirrels 106 

XXXIX.  The  Flying  Squirrel 109 

The  Owl Ill 

XL.  Bo-peep  and  the  Squirrel 112 

XLI.  How  the  Mole  Looks 114 

XLII.  How  the  Mole  Works  and  Lives 116 

XLIII.  About  the  Porcupine 118 

XLIV.  About  the  Woodchuck 120 

XLV.  Mrs.  Brindle's  Cowslip  Feast 122 

XL VI.  The  Frog  and  its  Home 124 

XL VII.  From  Tadpole  to  Frog 126 

XL VIII.  More  about  Frogs 128 

XLIX.  The  Friendly  Toad 130 

L.  The  Snail  and  its  House 132 

LI.  The  Fly  and  its  Ways 134 

LII.  The  Animals'  Ball .".                                                 .  136 


NURSERI   RHYME 


GOOSEY,  goosey,  gander ! 
Where  shall  I  wander? 
Up-stairs,  down-stairs, 
In  the  lady's  chamber ! 
There  sits  the  lady, 
Folding  up  the  clothes ; 
In  comes  a  blackbird, 
And  nips  off  her  nose  ! 


Chickens  at  Home. 


LESSON     I. 


11 


HOW  FOWLS  LOOK, 


1.  HEEE  we  find  the  hen  and  chickens,  a  new 
company  of  our  farm-yard  friends.     We  see  that 
they  are  very  unlike  the  other  friends  we  have 
been  studying,  and,  though  we  know  them  well, 
we  may  find  out  something  ngw.  about  them. 

2.  Instead  of  a  coat  of  hair  or  fur,  the  hen  is 
covered  with  feathers,  all  pointing  backward  and 
lying  over  each  other,  so  that  the  rain  falls  off  as 
from  the  shingles  of  a  house. 

3.  When  we  studied  the  cat,  we  found  that 
she  had  four  legs  for  walking  and  running,  and 


12 


L  E  S  S  O  N     I  .—(Continued.) 


that  she  used   the   paws  on  her  front   legs  for 
scratching  and  catching  her  prey. 

4.  We  have  but  two  legs  for  walking  or  run- 
ning, our  fore  legs  being  arms,  and  our  paws,  hands. 

5.  These  new  friends,  the  chickens,  have  but 
two  legs,  and  in  this  way  are  more  like  boys  and 

girls    than   are    cats 
i3  and  dogs. 

^F  <3?6.  But  the  chick- 

en has  the  same  num- 
ber of  limbs  as  the 
others,  only  those  in 
front  are  wings  in- 
stead of  fore  legs  or 
arms. 

)  7.  Here  is  a  pict- 
ure of  the  legs  and 
feet  of  a  hen.  We 
see  that  the  legs  are 
covered  with  scales, 
and  that  each  foot 
has  four  toes,  three  pointing  forward  and  one 
back.  Each  toe  has  a  long,  sharp,  and  strong 


t  us  look  at  the  hen  when  she  is  walking 
slowly  !     As  she  lifts  up  each  foot,  her  toes  curl 


LESSON     l.—(Contin 


13 


up,  very  much  as  our  fingers  do  when  we  double 

them  up  to  make  a 
fist. 

9.  When  the 
chicken  -is  about  a 
year  old,  a  spur, 
hard  like  horn,  be- 
gins to  grow  on 
the  inside  of  each 
leg.  Upon  the 
old  cocks  these 
spurs  are  long  and 
sharp,  and  he  can 

strike  savage  blows  with  them. 

10.  It  is  when  we  look  a  hen  in  the  face  that 
we  see  how  much  it 

differs  from  all  the 
animals  we  have 
studied  before. 

11.  The    head 
stands   up   straight, 
and    the   eyes   are 
placed  on  each  side, 
so  that  it  can  look 
forward,  to  the  side, 
and  partly  backward. 


14  LESSONI.  —{Continued.} 


12.  Two  little  ears  are  just  back  and  below 
the  eyes;   at  first  we  would  hardly  know  what 
they  are,  they  are  so  small  and  unlike  the  other 
ears  which  we  have  seen. 

13.  All  the  lower  part  of  the  face  is  a  bill, 
hard  like  horn,  and  running  out  to  a  point.     The 
bill  opens  and  makes  the  mouth,  and  two  holes  in 
the  upper  part  make  the  nose. 

14.  As  the  whole  bill  is  hard  like  bone,  the 
hen  does  not  need  teeth,  and  does  not  have  any. 
She  was  never  known  to  complain  with  the  tooth- 
ache. 

15.  Large  bits  of  food  she  scratches  apart  with 
her  feet,  or  breaks  up  with  her  bill ;  but,  as  she 
can  not  chew,  the  pieces  she  takes  into  her  mouth 
she  swallows  whole. 

16.  Upon  the  top  of  the  head  is  a  red,  fleshy 
comb,  which  is  much  larger  on  cocks  than  on  hens. 
This   comb   is   sometimes  single,  and   sometimes 
double. 

17.  Under  the  bill  on  each  side  there  hangs 
down  a  wattle  of  red  flesh  that  looks  very  much 
like  the  comb. 

18.  The  tail  of   the  cock   has  long   feathers, 
which  curl  over  the  rest  and   give  him  a  very 
graceful  appearance. 


LESSON     II. 


15 


WHAT  FOWLS  DO. 


1.  WHEN  the  lien  walks,  she  folds  her  wings 
close  by  her  side ;  but  when  she  flies,  she  spreads 
them  out  like  a  fan.     Her  body  is  so  heavy  that 
she  can  fly  but  a  little  ways  without  resting. 

2.  At  night  fowls  find  a  place  to  roost  upon  a 
tree,  or  a  piece  of  timber  placed  high  on  purpose 
for  them.     Their  toes  cling  around  the  stick  that 
they  stand  on,  so  that  they  do  not  fall  off. 

3.  Fowls  live  upon  grain,  bugs,  and  worms. 


16  LESSON     II  .—(Continued.) 


With  their  long  nails  and  strong  toes  they  scratch 
in  the  earth,  and  with  their  sharp  bills  they  pick 
up  anything  which  they  find  good  to  eat. 

4.  If  the  morsel  of  food  found  is  too  large  to 
be  swallowed  whole,  they  pick  it  to  pieces  with 
their  bills.     The  old  hen  always  picks  the  food 
to  pieces  for  her  chickens. 

5.  The  hen  lays  eggs,  usually  one  every  day, 
until  she  has  laid  from  fifteen  to  twenty.     If  her 
eggs  are  carried   away,  she  will  continue  to  lay 
for  a  longer  time. 

6.  When  she  has  a  nest  full  of  eggs,  she  sits 
upon  them,  keeping  them  warm  with  her  body 
for  three  weeks.     At  the  end  of  that  time  the 
eggs  hatch  out  into  little  chicks. 

7.  When  the  hatching  time  comes,  the  chick 
inside  the  egg  picks  a  little  hole  in  his  shell,  so 
that  he  can  get  his  bill  out,  and  then  he  breaks 
the  shell  so  that  he  can  step  but. 

8.  When  first  hatched,  the  chickens  are  cov- 
ered with  a  fine  down,  which  stays  on  until  their 
feathers  grow.     They  are  able  to  run  about  the 
moment  they  are  out  of  the  shell. 

9.  The   hen   is  a   careful   mother.     She   goes 
about   searching   and    scratching  for   food,    and, 
when  she   finds   it,    she   calls   her  chickens,    and 


LESSON     I  I.  — (Continued.) 


17 


Coming  out  in  the  World. 

does    not   eat   any   herself    until   they    are    sup- 
plied. 

10.  At   night,  and  whenever   it   is   cold,  she 
calls  them  together  and  broods  them,  by  lifting 
her  wings  a  little  and  letting  them  cuddle  under 
her  to  keep  warm. 

11.  When  anything   disturbs  her  chicks,  the 
old  hen  is  ready  to  fight,  picking  with  her  bill 
and  striking  with  her  wings  with  all  her  might. 

12.  The  cock  is  a  fine  gentleman.     He  walks 
about  in  his  best  clothes,  which  he  brushes  every 
day  and  keeps  clean.     He  struts  a  little,  to  show 
what  a  fine  bird  he  is. 

13.  In  the  morning  he  crows  long  and  loud,  to 
let  people  know  it  is  time  to  get  up ;  and  every 
little  while  during  the  day  he  crows,  to  tell  the 
neighbors  that  all  is  well  with  him  and  his  family. 

2 


18 


LESSON     III. 


CHICKENS'    WAYS. 


1.  WHEN  first  hatched,  chickens  look  about 
for  something  to  eat,  and  they  at  once  snap  at  a 
fly  or  bug  which  comes  in  their  way.  Here  we 


LESSON     III .  —  (Continued.)  19 


have  the  picture  of  three  little  chickens  reaching 
for  a  spider  that  hangs  on  its  thread. 

2.  Then  the  little  chick  knows  how  to  say  a 
great  many  things.     Before  he  is  a  week  old,  if 
we  offer  him  a  fly,  he  gives  a  little  pleasant  twit- 
ter, which  says,  "  That  is  good ! "  but  present  to 
him  a  bee  or  a  wasp,  and  a  little  harsh  note  says, 
"Away  with  it!" 

3.  When  running  about,  the  chick  has  a  little 
calling  note,  which  says,  "Here  I  am!"  and  the 
old  hen  clucks  back  in  answer ;  but,  when  there 
is  danger,  he  calls  for  help  in  a  quick,  sharp  voice, 
which  brings  the  old  hen  to  him  at  once. 

4.  The  hen  has  also  her  ways  of  speech.     She 
cackles  long  and  loud,  to  let  her  friends  know  that 
she  has  just  laid  an  egg ;  she  clucks,  to  keep  up  a 
talk  with  her  chicks;   she  calls  them  when  she 
has  found  something  to  eat ;  and  she  softly  coos 
over   them   when   she    broods    them   under    her 
wings. 

5.  But,  should  she  see  a  strange  cat  or  a  hawk 
about,  she  gives  a  shriek  of  alarm,  which  all  the 
little  ones  understand,  for  they  run  and  hide  as 
quickly  as  possible.     When  the  danger  is  past  she 
gives  a  cluck,  which  brings  them  all  out  of  their 
hiding-places. 


2O 


LESSON     IV. 


STORIES  ABOUT  CHICKENS. 


1.  SOMETIMES  ducks7  eggs  are  placed  under  the 
hen,  and  she  hatches  out  a  brood  of  young  ducks. 
As  soon  as  they  are  out  of  the  shell  they  make 
for  the  water,  and  plunge  in  and  have  a  swim. 


LESSON     I  V.  —  (Continued.}  21 


2.  The  old  hen  can  not  understand  this.     She 
keeps  out  of  the  water  when  she  can.     She  thinks 
her  chicks  will  be  drowned,  and  she  flies  about  in 
great  distress  until  they  come  out. 

3.  At  an  inn  in  Scotland  a  brood  of  chickens 
was  hatched  out  in  cold  weather,  and  they  all 
died.     The  old  hen  at  once  adopted  a  little  pig, 
not  old  enough  to  take  care  of  himself,  that  was 
running  about  the  farm-yard. 

4.  She  would  cluck  for  him  to  come  when  she 
had  found  something  to  eat,  and,  when  he  shivered 
with  cold,  she  would  warm  him  under  her  wings. 
The  pig   soon  learned   the  hen's  ways,   and   the 
two  kept  together,  the  best  of  friends,  until  the 
pig  grew  up,  and  did  not  need  her  help  any  more. 

5.  There  is  another  story  of  a  hen  that  adopt- 
ed three  little  kittens,  and  kept  them  under  her 
wings  for  a  long  time,  not  letting  their  mother  go 
near  them.     The  old  cat,  however,  watched  her 
chance,  and  carried  off  the  kittens  one  by  one  to 
a  place  of  safety. 

6.  Hens  do  not  always  agree,  and  sometimes 
they  are  badly  treated  by  one  another,  as  is  shown 
in  this  story : 

7.  An  old  hen  had  been  sitting  on  a  nest  full 
of  eggs,  in  a  quiet  place  in  the  garden,  until  they 


22  LESSON     IV.  —  ( Continued.) 


were  nearly  ready  to  hatch.  One  day  she  left  her 
nest  a  few  moments  to  get  something  to  eat,  and, 
while  she  was  gone,  a  bantam  hen,  on  the  watch, 
took  possession  of  it. 

8.  When  the  real  mother  came  back,  she  was 
in  great  distress ;  but  the  bantam  kept  the  nest, 
and  in  a  few  days  hatched  out  as  many  of  the 
eggs  as  she  could  cover. 

9.  She  then  strutted  about  at  the  head  of  her 
company  of  chickens,  and  passed  them  off  upon 
her  feathered  friends  as  her  own. 

10.  Hens   are  usually  timid,  and  they  run  or 
fly  away  when  they  see  any  danger.     But  in  de- 
fence of  their  chicks  they  are  often  very  bold. 

11.  A  rat  one  day  went  into  a  chicken -house 
where   there  was   a   brood   of    young    chickens. 
The  old  hen  pounced  upon  him,  and  a  fierce  battle 
took  place. 

12.  The  rat  soon  had  enough  of  it,  and  tried 
to  get  away ;  but  the  hen  kept  at  him  until  one 
of  the  family  came  and  killed  him. 

13.  One  day  a  sparrow-hawk  flew  down  into 
a  farm-yard  to  catch  a  chicken.     A  cock  about  a 
year  old  at  once  darted  at  him  and  threw  him  on 
his  back. 

14.  While  lying  there  he  could  defend  himself 


LESSON     IV.  —(Continued.)  23 


with  his  talons  and  beak ;  but  when  he  rose  and 
tried  to  take  wing,  the  cock  rushed  at  him  and 
upset  him  the  second  time. 

15.  The  hawk  by  this  time  thought  more  of 
getting  away  than  he  did  of  his  dinner ;  but  the 
cock  kept  him  down  until  somebody  came  and 
caught  him. 

16.  The  cock  looks  after  the  hens  and  chicks, 
and  is  ready  to  fight  for  them  in  time  of  danger. 
He  scratches  for  them,  and,  when  he  finds  some- 
thing good  to  eat,  like  the  gentleman  he  is,  he  calls 
them  to  the  feast  before  he  touches  it  himself. 

17.  He  also  has  his  own  fun.     Sometimes  he 
will  find  a  tempting  worm  and  call  all  the  hens, 
and,  just  as  they  are  about  to  seize  it,  he  will  swal- 
low it,  and  give  a  sly  wink,  as  much  as  to  say, 
"  Don't  you  wish  you  may  get  it ! " 


A  Cozy  Home. 


LESSON     V. 


HOW  DUCKS  LOOK  AND  LIVE, 

1.  HERE  comes  a  duck 
waddling   along,   another 
of  our  feathered   friends 
on  two  legs.     Let  us  take 
a  good  look  at  her. 

2.  In  shape  she  is  like 
the  hen,  only  her  legs  are 
shorter  and  her  body  nat- 
ter.    Her  feathers   are 
very  thick,  and  next  her 
skin  she  has  a  coat  of  soft 
down,    which     helps    to 
keep  her  warm. 

3.  The  duck's  wings  are  strong,  and  she  can 
fly  to  a  great  distance  without  being  tired.     Wild 
ducks  fly  a  great  many  miles  without  resting. 

4.  The  duck  has  no  comb  or  wattles  on  its 
head,  and  its  long  bill  is  broad  and  blunt  at  the 
end.     Its  tail  is  short  and  pointed,  and  it  has  no 
drooping   tail  feathers.     The  duck  has  the  same 
number  of  toes  as  a  chicken,  but  its  foot  is  webbed 
by  a  strong  skin,  which  binds  the  toes  together. 

5.  The    duck    is    formed    for   swimming.     It 
pushes  itself  along  in  the  water,  using  its  webbed 


LESSON     V  .  —  ( Continued.) 


feet  for  paddles.     The  down  on  its  breast  is  filled 

with  oil,  so  that  no 
water  can  get  through 
to  the  skin. 

6.  When   in  the 
water    we    will    see 
the  duck  often  dive, 
and    stay   under    so 
long  that  we  begin 
to  fear  it  will  never 
come    up,    and    we 
wonder  what  it  does 
that  for. 

7.  If    we    could 
watch   it  under  the 

water,  we  would  see  that  it  thrusts  its  broad  bill 
into  the  mud  at  the  bottom,  and  brings  out  worms, 
water-bugs,  and  roots  of  plants,  which  it  eats. 

8.  Should  a  frog  or  a  tadpole  come  within 
reach,  the  duck  would  snap  it  up  in  an  instant ; 
and  even  fish  are  sometimes  caught. 

9.  The  old  mother  duck  every  morning  leads 
her  brood  to  the  water.     As  she  waddles  along  on 
the  land,  her  gait  is  very  awkward,  but  the  mo- 
ment she  and  her  little  ones  get  to  the  water  they 
sail  out  in  the  most  graceful  way. 


LESSON    VI. 


STORIES  ABOUT  DUCKS, 


1.  DAME  BEIDSON  had  several  families  of  duck- 
lings, and  one  day  as  I  watched  her  feeding  them 
she  told  me  this  story : 

2.  "I- once  put  a  number  of  duck's  eggs  under 
a  hen,  and  they  all  hatched  out  nicely.    When  the 
ducks  were  a  few  days  old,  the  hen  left  them  for 
a  few  minutes  to  pick  up  some  food. 


28  LESSONVI.  —  (Continued.] 


3.  "  When  slie  came  back  I  heard  a  furious 
cackling,  and   ran  to  see  what  was  the  matter. 
And  what  do  you  think  I  saw  ? 

4.  "  There  lay  my  old  tabby  cat,  who  had  just 
lost  her  kittens,  and  there  were  the  little  duck- 
lings all  cuddled  up  around  her. 

5.  "  The  old  cat  purred  over  them  and  licked 
them  just  as  though  she  thought  they  were  her 
own  kittens. 

6.  "The  poor  hen  was  wild  with  fright  and 
rage,  and  a  little  way  back  stood  Toby,  the  old 
watch-dog,  trying  to  find  out  what  was  the  trouble. 

7.  "  From  that  time,  until  they  were  big  enough 
to  take  care  of  themselves,  tabby  came  and  slept 
with  the  ducklings  every  night. 

8.  "The  old  hen  took  her  loss  very  much  to 
heart,  and  I  had  to  comfort  her  by  giving  her 
another  batch  of  eggs  to  sit  on." 

9.  Another  story  is  told  of  an  old  dog  who 
took  a  fancy  to  a   brood  of  young  ducks,   who 
had  lost  their  mother.      They  followed  him  about 
everywhere,  and,  when  he  lay  down,  the  ducklings 
nestled  all  about  him. 

10.  One  duckling  used  to  scramble  upon  the 
dog's  head  and  sit  down  upon  his  eye;  but  the 
old  dog  never  moved,  though  the  pressure  upon 


LESSON     VI  .—(Continued.) 


the  eye  must  have  hurt  him.     He  seemed  to  think 
more  of  his  little  friends  than  of  himself. 

11.  One  day  a  young  lady  was  sitting  in  a 
room  close  by  a  farm-yard,  in  which  there  were 
chickens,  ducks,  and   geese  feeding  and  playing 
together. 

12.  While  busy  with  her  sewing,  a  drake  came 
into  the  room,  took  hold  of  her  dress,  and  tried  to 
pull  her  toward  the  door. 

13.  She  was  afraid  at  first,  and  pushed  him 
away ;  but  he  came  back  again  and  again,  and  she 
soon  saw  that  he  was  not  angry,  but  was  trying 
to  get  her  to  follow  him. 

14.  She  got  up,  and  he  led  her  to  the  side  of 
a  pond,  where  she  found  a  duck  with  its  head 
caught  in  a  railing.     She  made  haste  to  set  the 
poor  creature   free,   and    the   drake   flapped   his 
wings  and  gave  a  joyous  quack  of  thanks. 


"Quack!   Quack!   Quack!" 


30 


LESSON     VII. 


HOW  GEESE  LOOK  AJV'D  LIVE. 

1.  THE    goose   and 
the    duck    are    much 
alike  in  looks  and  ways. 
The  legs  of  the  goose 
are   longer,  so   that   it 
stands  higher  and  can 
walk  better  on  land. 

2.  The    goose    is 
larger  than  the  duck, 
its  neck  longer,  and  its 
wings    broader.     Its 
feet  are  webbed,  so  that 
it  can  swim  well  in  the 
water. 

3.  Its  bill  is  broad  and  more  pointed  than  that 
of  a  duck.     Its  wings  are  very  strong,  and  it  is 
able  to  fly  a  great  distance  without  rest. 

4.  When  in  the  water  it  does  not  dive  like  the 
duck,  but  it  thrusts  its  bill  down  into  the  water 
or  mud  the  length  of  its  long  neck. 

5.  The  feathers  of  the  goose  are  white  or  gray, 
and  very  light  and  soft,  and  are  used  for  making 
beds  and  pillows.     Not  a  great  while  ago  pens 
were  made  of   the  quills  that  come  out  of  the 


LESSON     VII  .  —  (Continued.} 


31 


wings  of  the  goose,  and  everybody  who  wrote 
used  them. 

6.  Geese  make  their  nests  on  the  ground,  where 
the  old  mother  goose  lays  about  a  dozen  eggs  be- 
fore she  begins  to  sit.     These  eggs  are  twice  the 
size  of  hens'  eggs. 

7.  The  goslings  are  covered  with  a  thick  coat 
of  down,  and  are  able  to  ran  on  the  land  or  swim 
in  the  water  when  they  first  come  out  of  the  shell. 

8.  The  goose  and   the   gander  together  take 
good  care  of  their  goslings.    When  anything  comes 
near,  they  stretch  out  their  necks  and  give  a  loud 
hiss. 

9.  Should  a  strange  dog  venture  too  near,  they 
will  take  hold  of  him  with  their  bills  and  beat 
him  with  their  wings  until  he  is  glad  to  get  away. 


32  LESSON    VIII. 


HOW  GEESE  BEHAVE. 


1.  THE   feathers   of  the   goose   are   of   great 
value.    They  are  plucked  out  three  or  four  times  a 
year,  at  times  when  the  weather  is  warm  and  fair. 

2.  The  goose  likes  cold  water.     Great  flocks 
of  wild  geese  live  in  the  swamps  and  lakes  in  the 
cold  northern  regions,  and  we  can  see  them  flying 
overhead  in  the  spring  and  fall. 

3.  A  miller  once  had  a  flock  of  geese,  and  he 
lost  them  all  except  one  old  goose,  that  for  a  long 
time  swam  round  alone  on  the  mill-pond. 

4.  Now,  the  miller's  wife  placed  a  number  of 
duck's  eggs  under  a  hen,  and,  as  soon  as  they  were 
hatched,  the  ducklings  ran  to  the  water. 

5.  .The  old  goose,  seeing  the  fright  and  flurry 
of  the  hen,  sailed  up  with  a  noisy  gabble,  and  took 


LESSON     VIII.  —  (Continue-,/.)  33 

the  ducklings  in  charge,  and  swam  about  with 
them. 

6.  When  they  were  tired,  she  led  them  to  the 
shore  and  gave  them  back  to  the  care  of  the  hen, 
who,  to  her  great  joy,  found  that  they  were  all 
safe  and  sound. 

7.  The  next  day  down  came  the  ducklings  to 
the  pond,  with  the  hen  fussing  and  fretting  as 
before.     The  goose  was  waiting  near  the  shore. 

8.  When  the  ducklings  had  taken  to  the  water, 
the  hen,  to  get  near  them,  flew  upon  the  back  of 
the  goose,  and  the  two  sailed  up  and  down  the 
pond  after  the  ducklings. 

9.  So,  day  after  day,  away  sailed  the  duck- 
lings, and  close  behind   them  came  the  mother 
hen,  now  quite  at  her  ease  on  the  back  of  the 
friendly  goose,  watching  her  gay  little  brood. 

10.  A  lady  tells  this  story  of  a  gander:  "My 
grandfather  was  fond  of  pets,  and  he  had  once  a 
droll  one,  named  Swanny.     This  was  a  gander  he 
had  raised  near  the  house,  because  he  had  been 
left  alone  by  the  other  geese. 

11.  "This  gander  would  follow  him  about  like 
a  dog,  and  would  be  very  angry  if  any  one  laid  a 
hand  upon  him. 

12.  "Swanny  sometimes  tried  to  make  himself 


34  LESSON     VIII.  —  (Continued.) 

at  home  with  the  flock  of  geese ;  but  they  always 
drove  him  away,  and  then  he  would  run  and  lay 
his  head  on  my  grandfather's  knee,  as  though  sure 
of  finding  comfort  there. 

13.  "At  last  he  found  a  friend  of  his  own 
kind.     An  old  gray  goose  became  blind,  and  the 
flock  turned  her  out.     Swanny  took  pity  on  her, 
led  her  about,  and  provided  for  her  all  the  food 
she  needed. 

14.  "When  he  thought  she  needed  a  swim,  he 
took  her  neck  in  his  bill  and  led  her  to  the  water, 
and  then  guided  her  about  by  arching  his  neck 
over  hers. 

15.  "When  she  hatched  out  a  brood  of  gos- 
lings, Swanny  took  the  best  of  care  of  them,  as 
well  as  of  their  mother.     In  this  way  they  lived 
together  for  several  years." 

16.  Here  is  another  story,  showing  that  geese 
have  good  sense : 

17.  A  flock  of  geese,  living  by  a  river,  built 
their  nests  on  the  banks ;  but  the  water-rats  came 
and  stole  the  eggs. 

18.  Then  the  geese  made  their  nests  in  the 
trees,  where  the  rats  could  not  get  at  them ;  and 
when   the  goslings  were  hatched,  they   brought 
them  down  one  by  one  under  their  wings. 


LESSON     IX, 


WHAT  GEESE  CAN  DO. 

1.  To  show  that  the 
goose  has  a  great  deal 
of  good  sense,  this  story 
X       is  told: 

vif-/,y  2.  At  a  small  coun- 

try church  a  poor  blind 
woman  used  to  come  in 
every  Sunday  morning, 
as  regular  as  the  clock, 
a  minute  or  two  behind 
the  pastor. 

3.  She  was  always 
alone,  came  in  the  last 
and  went  away  the  first 
of  any.  The  pastor, 
who  was  a  new-comer,  was  puzzled  to  know  how 
she  got  about  so  well. 

4.  One  day  he  set  out  to  visit  her,  and  found 
that  she  lived  in  a  small  cottage,  more  than  a  mile 
away. 

5.  On  his  way  to  her  home,  he  crossed  a  stream 
on  a  narrow  rustic  bridge,  with  a  railing  on  only 
one  side. 

6.  He  rapped  at  the  door,  and  asked  of  the 


36  LESSON     IX.  —  ( Continued.] 


woman  who  opened  it,  "Does  the  blind  woman 
who  comes  to  church  every  Sunday  live  here?" 
"  Yes,  that  she  does !  but  she's  out  in  the  field 


now." 


7.  "  Why  do  you  let  the  poor  creature  come 
all  the  way  by  herself,  and  across  the  bridge,  too  ? 
She  will  fall  into  the  water  some  day  and  be 
drowned ! " 

8.  The   woman    laughed    softly.      "  Sure,  she 
doesn't  go  alone — the  goose  takes  her  ! "  said  she. 

9.  "What  do  you  mean  by  the  goose  taking 
her  ? "  said  the  pastor. 

10.  "Sure,"  said  the  woman,  "it  is  the  goose 
whose  life  she  saved  when  it  was  a  little  gosling. 
And   now  it   comes  every  Sunday  at   the  same 
minute  to  take  her  to  church. 

11.  "It  gets  her  skirt  into  its  mouth, and  leads 
her  along  quite  safely.     When  it  comes  to  the 
bridge  it  puts  her  next  the  rail,  and  keeps  between 
her  and  the  water. 

12.  "It  stays  about   the  church-door  till  the 
service  is  out,  and  then  it  takes  her  by  the  gown 
and  brings  her  home  just  the  same." 

13.  The  pastor  was  greatly  pleased  with  this 
story,  and  soon  after  he  preached  a  sermon  on 
kindness  to  animals. 


LESSON     X 


37 


ABOUT  TURKEYS, 


1.  THE  turkey  is.  about  as  large  as  a  goose, 
but  its  legs  are  longer,  and  it  stands  up  higher. 
Its  feet  are  partly  webbed,  so  that  it  can  swim  a 
little. 

2.  Its   bill   is   short,  thick,  and  pointed,  and 
upon  its  head,  above  and  between  the  eyes,  grows 
a  fleshy  wattle,  which  does  not  stand  up  like  the 


38 


LESSON     X.-  (Continued.) 


comb  of  a  cock,  but  hangs  down  over  the  bill. 
Upon  the  breast  is  a  tuft  of  long,  coarse  hair. 

3.  The   tail 
is  broad    and 
rounded,   and 
hangs    down- 
ward ;    but    the 
turkey  can  raise 
it  and  spread  it 
out  like  a  fan. 

4.  The    tur- 
key can  fly  but 
a  little  way,  but 
it  can  run  very 

fast.     At  night,  it  roosts  on  trees  or  high  places. 

5.  The  hen-turkey  is  timid,  but  the  old  gobbler 
rather  likes  to  quarrel.     He  is  a  vain  bird,  and  it 
is  funny  to  see  him  strut  up  and  down,  with  his 
tail  spread  out,  and  his  wings  drawn  down,  his 
feathers  ruffled,  and  his  neck  drawn  back,  and  to 
hear  him  puff,  and  cry,  "  Gobble !  gobble  ! " 

6.  Great  flocks  of  wild  turkeys  are  found  in 
the  West,  where  they  live  in  the  woods  upon  nuts 
and  insects.     The  eagles  sometimes  pounce  down 
and  carry  off  young  turkeys,  as  is  shown  in  this 
picture. 


LESSON     XI. 


39 


ABOUT  SWANS. 


1.  HEEE  we  have  the  picture  of  the  swan,  the 
largest  bird  of  the  goose  kind.     It  is  not  often 
seen  in  this  country,  but  is  found  in  the  Central 
Park,  New  York,  and  in  a  few  other  places. 

2.  It  has  short,  stout  legs,  and  webbed  feet, 


4O  LESSONXI.  —  (Continued.) 

like  the  duck,  and  it  waddles  along  on  the  land  in 
a  slow  and  awkward  way.  It  is  clothed  with 
feathers  of  a  fine  quality,  like  the  goose,  and  those 
we  see  in  this  country  are  pure  white.  Black 
swans  are  found  in  some  countries. 

3.  Its  neck  is  much  longer  than  that  of  the 
goose,  and  when   it  swims,  sitting  high   in    the 
water,  with  its  long  neck  arched,  it  is  one  of  the 
most  graceful  birds  in  the  world.     It  has  strong 
wings,  and   wild  swans   can   fly  a  long  distance 
without  tiring.     Tame  swans  do  not  fly  far. 

4.  The  bill  of  the  swan  is  broad,  and  pointed 
like  that  of  the  goose,  but  a  little  longer.     Below 
the  eyes,  and  at  the  base  of  the  bill,  a  narrow 
band  of  black  extends  across  the  front  of  the  head. 

5.  The  swans  run  in  pairs.     The  mother  swan 
lays  from  five  to  eight  eggs,  and  hatches  them  in 
six  weeks.     The  young  swans  are  called  cygnets. 
They   are  covered   with  down,   and   are  able  to 
walk  and  swim  when  first  out  of  the  shell. 

6.  The  father  swan  watches  the  nest,  and  helps 
take  care  of  the  young  ones.     He  will  fly  at  any- 
thing that  comes  near,  and  he  is  able  to  strike  ter- 
rible blows  with  his  wings.     He  can  drive  away 
any  bird,  even  the  eagle. 

7.  Swans  usually  build  nests  of  a  few  coarse 


LESSON     XI.  —  (Continued.)  41 

*  ^ 

sticks,  and  a  lining  of  grass  or  straw.  They  have 
a  curious  habit,  however,  of  raising  their  nests 
higher,  and  of  raising  the  eggs  at  the  same  time. 

8.  At   times  they  seem    to  know  that    some 
danger  threatens  them,  and  then  they  turn  their 
instinct  for  raising  their  nests  to  some  purpose.   A 
person  who  observed  all  the  facts  tells  this  story : 

9.  For  many  years  an  old  swan  had  built  her 
nest  on  the  border  of  a  park,  by  the  river-side. 
From  time  to  time  she  had  raised  her  nest,  but 
never  more  than  a  few  inches. 

10.  Once,  when  there  had  been  no  rain  for  a 
long  time,  and  the  river  was  very  low,  she  began 
to  gather  sticks  and  grasses  to  raise  her  nest,  and 
she  would  scarcely  stop  long  enough  to  eat. 

11.  She  seemed  so  anxious  to  get  materials  for 
nest-building  that  she  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  family  living  near  by,  and  a  load  of  straw  was 
carried  to  her.     This  she  worked  all  into  her  nest, 
and  never  stopped  until  the  eggs  had  been  raised 
two  and  a  half  feet. 

12.  In  the  night  a  heavy  rain  fell,  the  river 
flowed  over  its  banks,  and  the  water  came  over 
the  spot  where  the  eggs  had  been ;  but  it  did  not 
quite  come  up  to  the  top  of  the  new  nest,  and  so 
the  swan  saved  them0 


LESSON     XII. 


DOVES  AND   PIGEONS. 


The  Bath. 

1.  EVERYBODY   likes   the   dove ;   it   is  such  a 
pretty  bird,  and  is  always  so  clean.     It  flies  all 
about  the  yard,  the  garden,  and  the  street.     Even 
the  rudest  boys  do  not  often  disturb  it. 

2.  It  is  about  the  size  of  a  half-grown  chicken, 
and  looks  more  like  a  chicken  than  any  of   the 
other  birds  we  have  studied. 

3.  The   doves   about  our  houses  are  usually 
white,  or  a  bluish  gray.     They  live  in  pairs,  each 
pair  having  its  own  nest,  or  home ;   but  where 


LESSON     XII.— 


43 


doves  are  kept,  many  pairs  live  in  the  same  house 
or  dove-cote. 

4.  They   have   a   short,   pointed   bill,   like   a 
chicken,  and  strong  legs  and  toes,  so  that  they  can 
walk  and  scratch  easily. 

5.  The  mother  dove  lays  but  two  eggs  before 
sitting,    and 

then  her  mate 
sits  on  the  nest 
half  of  the  time 
until  the  eggs 
are  hatched. 
The  young 
doves,  called 
squabs,  are  cov- 
ered with  down 
like  chickens, 
but,  unlike 
chickens,  the 
old  ones  must 

feed  them  a  week  or  two  before  they  are  able  to 
go  about  by  themselves. 

6.  Both  the  father  and  mother  dove  feed  the 
young  ones  with   a  kind  of   milky  curd  which 
comes  from  their  own  crops. 

7.  When  the  chicken  drinks,  it  sips  its  bill  full, 


44  LESSON     XII.  -(Continued.) 


and  then  raises  its  head  and  swallows;  but  the 
dove  does  not  raise  its  head  until  it  has  drank 
enough. 

8.  The  pigeon — which  is  another  name  for  the 
dove — has  very  strong  wings,  and  can  fly  far  and 
fast  without  tiring.    When  taken  from  their  home 
a  great  distance,  pigeons  will  fly  straight  back. 

9.  Before  we  had  railroads  and  telegraphs,  peo- 
ple  would   take   pigeons  away  from   home,  and 
send  them  back  with  a  letter  tied  under  their 
wings.     These  were  called  carrier-pigeons. 

10.  The  doves  in  each  home  are  very  fond  of 
each  other.     We  can  hear  the  father  dove  softly 
cooing  to  his  mate  at  almost  any  time  when  they 
are  about. 

11.  One  day  a  farmer  shot  a  male  dove,  and 
tied   the   body  to  a  stake   to   scare  away  other 
birds.    The  poor  widow  was  in  great  distress.    She 
first  tried  to  call  him  away,  and  then  she  brought 
him  food.    When  she  saw  he  did  not  eat,  her  cries 
were  pitiable. 

12.  She  would  not  leave  the  body,  but  day 
after  day  she  continued  to  walk  about  the  stake, 
until  she  had  worn  a  beaten  track  around  it.     The 
farmer's  wife  took  pity  on  her,  and  took  away  the 
dead  bird,  and  then  she  went  back  to  the  dove-cote. 


THREE  LITTLE  DOVES. 

THREE  little  doves  put  on  their  gloves, 

And  then  sat  down  to  dine ; 
These  little  doves,  they  soiled  their  gloves, 

And  soon  were  heard  to  whine— 
"  Oh,  mother  dear,  come  here,  come  here, 

For  we  have  soiled  our  gloves  ! " 
"  Soiled  your  gloves,  you  naughty  doves, 
You  shan't  sit  up  till  nine." 
"  Coo,  coo,  coo  ! " 

These  little  doves,  they  washed  their  gloves, 

And  hung  them  on  the  line ; 
These  little  doves,  they  dried  their  gloves, 

And  thought  it  very  fine. 
"  Oh,  mother  dear,  come  here,  come  here, 

For  we  have  washed  our  gloves  ! " 
"  Washed  your  gloves,  you  loves  of  doves, 
Then  you  shall  stay  till  nine  ! " 
"  Coo,  coo,  coo  ! " 


The  Wren  and  her  Nest, 


LESSON    XIII.  47 


THE  LITTLE    WREN* 

1.  ONE  of  the  pret- 
tiest    birds    that    fly 
about    our    doors    in 
summer  is  the  friend- 
ly  little   wren.      It 
makes   its  home  near 
the     house,    and     its 
glad     song     can      be 
heard  throughout  the 
whole  day. 

2.  6ne   kind   of 
wren  builds  its  nest  under  the  eaves,  as  shown 
in  the  picture ;  but  the  common  ho  use- wren  builds 
in  almost  any  hole  it  can  find  in  a  shed  or  stable. 

3.  They  have  been  known  to  choose  an  old 
boot  left  standing  in  a  corner,  an  old  hat  hanging 
against  the  wall,  and  one  time  a  workman,  taking 
down  a  coat  which  he  had  left  for  two  or  three 
days,  found  a  wren's  nest  in  the  sleeve. 

4.  The  wren  flies  low,  and  but  a  little  way  at 
a  time.     Its  legs,  like  most  of  the  singing  birds, 
are  small  and  weak,  and  it  does  not  walk,  but 
when  on  the  ground  it  goes  forward  by  little  hops. 

5.  It  flies  with  a  little  tremor  of  its  wings,  but 


48  LESSONXII  I .  —  (Continued.) 


without  any  motion  of  its  body  or  tail.  While  its 
mate  is  sitting,  the  father  wren  will  flutter  slowly 
through  the  air,  singing  all  the  time. 

6.  The  mother  wTen  lays  from  six  to  ten  eggs, 
and  hatches  them  out  in  ten  days.     The  young 
birds  are   naked  of  feathers,  and   seem   to  have 
only  mouths,  which  open  for  something  to  eat. 

7.  The  old  birds  are  busy  in  bringing  the  young 
ones  worms  and  insects,  until  they  are  old  enough 
to  fly.      In  this  way  a  single  pair  of  wrens  will 
destroy  many  hundred  insects  every  day. 

8.  The  wren  quarrels  with  other  birds  if  they 
try  to  build  nests  too  near  it.     It  will  often  take 
the  nest  of  the  martin  or  bluebird  when  the  owner 
is  away,  and  hold  on  to  it. 

9.  At  one  time  a  wren  was  seen  to  go  into  the 
nest  which   a  pair  of  martins  had  just  finished. 
When  the  martins  came  back,  it  beat  them  off. 
The  martins   kept   watch,  and,  when   the   wren 
was  out,  they  went  back  into  their  box,  and  built 
up  a  strong  door,  so  the  wren  could  not  get  in. 

10.  For  two  days  the  wren  tried  to  force  its 
way  in ;  but  the  martins  held  on,  and  went  with- 
out  food  during  that  time.     At  last  the  wren  gave 
up,  and  built  a  nest  elsewhere,  leaving  the  martins 
in  quiet  possession  of  their  own  nest. 


LESSON     XIV. 


49 


THE  SINGING   THRUSH. 


1.  THE  thrush  is  one  of  our  best  singing  birds. 
It  does  not  come  near  the  house,  like  the  wren,  but 
it  builds  its  nest   in  thickets  and  quiet   places, 
where  it  is  not  liable  to  be  disturbed. 

2.  It  lives  on  berries  and  insects.     It  is  a  shy 
bird ;  but  in  the  edge  of  the  wood  its  song  may  be 
heard  often  during  the  day,  becoming  more  fre- 
quent toward  evening. 

3.  The  mother  bird  lays  from  four  to  six  eggs, 


so 


LESSON     XIV.  —  (Continued.} 


wings 


or 


red 


and  both  father  and  mother  sit  on  the  eggs  and 

take  care  of  the  young. 

4.  The  thrush  is  double  the  size  of  the  wren, 

and  nearly  all  the  kinds  are  brown  in  color,  some 

having    their 
tipped   with 
yellow. 

5.  The  brown 
thrush,  or  brown 
thrasher  as  it  is 
sometimes  called,  is 
bold  and  strong,  and 
when  a  cat  or  fox 
comes  prowling 
about  near  its  nest  it 
flies  at  him  so  savage- 
ly that  he  is  glad  to 
get  out  of  the  way. 

6.  It  is  not  afraid  of  hawks,  and  it  has  a  special 
spite  against  snakes  that  come  around  to  rob  its 
nest.     When  it  sees  a  snake,  it  flies  at  him  with 
great  rage,  and  kills  him  or  drives  him  off. 

7.  The  hermit  thrush  lives  in  the  dark,  thick 
woods,  and  many  people  think  its  song,  which  is 
heard  in  the  evening  twilight,  is  sweeter  than  that 
of  any  other  bird. 


LESSON     XV. 


ROBIN-REDBREAST. 


1.  "O  Kobin,  Robin-Redbreast,  O  Robin, 

Robin  dear ! 

O  Robin  sings  so  sweetly  in  the  falling 
of  the  year  ! " 

So  says  the  old   song,  but  Robin  sings  just  as 
sweetly  all  the  summer  long. 

2.  The  robin  is  better  known  than  most  birds. 
It  comes  earliest  in  the  spring,  and  goes  away  late 
in  the  fall.     It  builds  its  nest  near  houses,  and 


LESSON     XV.  —  (Continued.} 


every  day  flies  about  the  garden  and  yard,  picking 

up  such  crumbs  as  may  be  thrown  to  it.     It  is  the 

special  favorite  of  children. 

3.  It  is  three  times  as  large  as  the  wren.     Its 

color  is  a  dark  olive-gray  above,  with  a  red  breast. 

Its  head  and  throat 
are  streaked  with 
black  and  white. 

4.  It  has  a  pleas- 
ant,   home-like    little 
song,    and    its   notes 
vary  with  the  weath- 
er, being  much  more 
joyous     on    bright, 
warm  days. 

5.  The    English 
robin   is   about    half 
the  size  of  ours,  but 

has  the  same  gray  coat,  and  a  somewhat  redder 
breast. 

6.  It  lives  about  yards  and  gardens,  and  wakes 
people  up  in  the  morning  with  its  charming  little 
song.    It  does  not  like  to  have  other  birds,  or  cats, 
come  too  near  its  nest ;  and  when  they  do,  it  flies 
at  them  with  great  rage. 

7.  When  the  robin  has  once  built  its  nest  it 


LESSON     XV  .  —  (Continued.}  53 


is  not  easily  driven  away.  Once,  a  wagon  loaded 
for  a  journey  was  left  standing  a  few  days  in  a 
yard.  Under  the  canvas  covering  of  this  wagon  a 
pair  of  robins  built  their  nest. 

8.  After  the  wagoner  started,  he  found  the 
nest,  with  the  young  just  hatched.     The  old  birds 
went  along,  taking  turns  in  brooding  the  young 
ones  and  in  flying  about  for  worms. 

9.  The  wagon  went  a  hundred  miles  and  back, 
and,  by  the  time  it  came  back  to  the  place  of  start- 
ing, the  young  birds  were  pretty  well  grown.    You 
may  be  sure  that  the  wagoner  did  not  let  any  one 
disturb  the  birds  on  the  route. 

10.  One  spring  a  pair  of  thrushes  were  seen 
abaut  the  garden  of   a  country  house.      One  of 
them  seemed  ill,  and  could  hardly  get  about.     It 
would  hop  a  little  way,  and  then  stop,  too  tired  to 
go  farther. 

11.  Her  mate  toot  good  care  of  her.     He  got 
her  into  a  safe  place  in  a  tree,  brought  her  worms 
and  insects,  and  cheered  her  with  his  music. 

12.  In  the  course  of  three  or  four  days  she  got 
better ;  and  one  day,  when  he  came  with  her  din- 
ner, she  flew  a  little  way  to  meet  him,  and  in  a 
short  time  they  went  off  together,  each  singing  a 
joyous  song. 


LESSON     XVI. 


THE  BLACKBIRD  AND   THE   CAT. 

1.  THE    English 
blackbird  is  about  the 
size  of  our  robin.     It  is 
a  cousin  to  the  thrush, 
and  sings  a  sweet  little 
song. 

2.  It  builds  its  nest 
in    trees    and    hedges 
near    houses,    and    all 
day  long  you  can  hear 
its    song    as    it    goes 
about   busy  in   taking 
care  of  its  family. 

3.  One    spring,    a 
couple    of    blackbirds 
built   their   nest  on   a 
tree  that  stood  by  the 
garden   fence,   near    a 
cottage.   All  went  well 
with   them    until    the 
eggs  were  hatched,  and 
four  little  birds  filled 
the  nest. 

4.  But  the  old  cat  had  been  on  the  watch,  and 


LESSON     XV  I.— (Continued.) 


had  found  out  where  the  nest  was.  One  morning, 
while  the  mother  bird  was  out  after  worms,  the 
cat  thought  it  a  good  time  to  make  her  breakfast 
on  young  birds.  So  she  climbed  to  the  top  of  the 
fence,  and  crept  along  on  its  narrow  edge  until  she 
came  almost  in  reach  of  the  nest. 

5.  But  Mr.  Blackbird,  who  had  been  watching 
her  for  some  time,  with  a  loud  cry  of  rage  now 
made  a  dash  at  her  and  hit  her  square  in  the  face. 

6.  The  cat  tried  to  strike  him  with  her  claw ; 
but  she  had  to  hold  on  to  the  fence  to  keep  from 
falling,  and  so  could  not  spring  upon  him. 

7.  After  hitting  her  several  times,  the  bird  lit 
upon  her  back,  and  struck  her  with  his  wings,  and 
pecked  her  with  all  his  might. 

8.  The  cat  tried  to  turn  and  get  at  him,  but 
lost  her  hold  and  rolled  off  the  fence.     But  the 
bird  kept  flying  at  her  until  she  ran  away.     Then 
he  perched  on  a  rail  and  sang  a  joyous  song. 

9.  The  next  day  the  cat  came  creeping  along 
again  toward  the  nest ;  but  the  blackbird  was  ready 
for  her,  and  gave  her  another  good  drubbing  until 
she  again  fell  off  the  fence  and  ran  away. 

10.  Afterward,  the  bird  took  to  hunting  the 
cat  every  time  she  came  about,  until  he  finally 
drove  her  entirely  out  of  the  garden. 


LESSON     XVII. 


HOW  CANARIES  LIVE  AND  SING. 


1.  CANAEY-BIEDS  were  first  found  in  a  warm 
region,  and  they  can  not  live  out-of-doors  in  our 
country.     They  have  lived  so  long  in  cages,  and 
been  taken  care  of,  that  now  they  have  lost  the 
power  to  get  their  own  living,  and,  if  turned  out, 
would  soon  starve  to  death. 

2.  The  canary  is  one  of  the  sweetest  of  all  the 
bird  singers,  and  it  is  so  pretty  in  its  ways,  and  so 


LESSON     XVII.  —  (Continued.) 


clean,  that  it  is  more  often  made  a  pet  than  any 
other  bird.  It  has  a  sweet  song  of  its  own,  but 
it  is  easily  taught  to  sing  a  great  many  new  notes. 
The  songs  of  the  canary,  as  we  hear  them,  are  very 
different  from  its  song  when  wild. 

3.  A  canary  will  often  become  so  tame  that  it 
will    fly   about 

the  room,  come 
when  called, 
perch  on  its  mis- 
tress's finger, 
and  eat  out  of 
her  mouth. 

4.  The    ca- 
nary lays  from 
four  to  six  eggs, 

and  hatches  them  in  about  two  weeks.  Both 
father  and  mother  bird  take  care  of  the  young. 

5.  In  a  large  cage  with  two  parts,  two  finches 
were  in  one  end  and  two  canaries  in  the  other. 
The  finches  hatched  out  their  eggs,  but  did  not 
feed  their  young  ones  enough.    The  father  canary, 
bearing  their  hungry  cries,  forced  himself  between 
the  bars  into  their  part  of  the  cage,  and  fed  them. 
This  he  did  every  day,  till  the  finches  were  shamed 
into  feeding  the  little  ones  themselves. 


58 


LESSON     XVIII. 


A  SONG   OF  SUMMER. 

A  CUCKOO  sat  on  a  tree 

and  sang, 
"  Summer  is  coming, 

coming  " ; 

And  a  bee  crept  out 
from  the  hive  and 
began 

Lazily    humming, 
humming. 

The  frogs,  from  out  the 
rushes  and  reeds, 
Into  the  water  went 

splashing ; 

And  the  dragon-fly,  with  his  body  of  green, 
Through  the  flags  went  flashing,  flashing. 

The  dormouse  put  out  her  head  and  said, 
"  Really  the  sun  shines  brighter  " ; 

But  the  butterfly  answered,  "  Not  yet,  not  yet," 
And  folded  his  wings  up  tighter. 

But  the  thrush  and  the  blackbird  began  to  sing 
Ever  sweeter  and  sweeter, 


LESSON     X  VI  I  I.—  (Continued.}  59 


And  the  grasshopper  chirped,  and  hopped,  and 

skipped 
Ever  fleeter  and  fleeter. 

The  gnats  and  the  chafers  began  to  buzz ; 

And  the  swallows  began  to  chatter: 
"  We  have  come  from  abroad  with  the  summer 
at  last. 

How  lazy  you  are  !  what's  the  matter  ? " 

Then  the  dormouse  said,  "  Summer's  really  here, 
Since  the  swallows  are  homeward  coming  " ; 

And  the  butterfly  spread  out  his  wings,  and  the 

bee 
Went  louder  and  louder  humming. 

And  suddenly  brighter  the  sun  shone  out, 
And  the  clouds  away  went  sailing, 

And  the  sheep  nibbled  peacefully  at  the  grass, 
And  the  cow  looked  over  the  paling. 

Yes,  summer  had  come,  and  the  cuckoo  sang 
His  song  through  woodland  and  hollow : 

"  The  summer  is  come ;  if  you  don't  believe  me, 
You  have  only  to  ask  the  swallow." 


6O 


LESSON     XIX. 


HOW  PARROTS  LOOK  AND   TALK. 

1.  NEXT 
to  the  cana- 
ry, the  par- 
rot is  the 
pet  bird  of 
the  house- 
hold. It  is 
kept  for  its 
bright  col- 
ors, its  curi- 
o  u  s  ways, 
and  its  pow- 
er to  talk. 

2.  The 
parrot  is 
about  the 
size  of  the 
dove.  In 

color,  those  that  we  see  most  often  are  green  or 
gray..  Some  parrots  are  of  a  bright  red,  and  oth- 
ers are  gay  with  bright  green,  red,  and  yellow. 

3.  The  parrot  has  a  thick,  strong,  and  hooked 
bill.      It   is  so  strong  that  it  can   take  hold   of 


LESSON     XIX.  —  (Continued.) 


61 


the  branch   of   a   tree   and   hold   itself   up,   and 
with  it  it  can  crack 
the   hardest   nuts. 

4.  It  came  from 
a  warm  region,  and 
must  have  a  warm 
room  in  winter,  or 
it  will  die.    It  lives 
on  nuts  and  seeds, 
but  when  kept  in 
the   house    it   will 
s  o  m  e  t  i  m  e's     eat 
meat. 

5.  The  parrot  learns  to  love  its  master  and 
those  that  take  care  of  it ;  but  it  is  often  cross  to 

strangers,  and  will  give 
them  a  terrible  bite  with 
its  hooked  bill  if  they 
come  too  near. 

6.  Like  other  birds,  the 
parrot  has  four  toes  on 
each  foot ;  but  two  of  these 
are  in  front  and  two  be- 
hind. The  toes  are  very 

strong,  and  with  them  it  can  grasp  things  as  we 

do  with  our  hands. 


62  LESSON     XIX.  —  (Continued.) 


7.  With  these  toes  it  climbs  easily,  reaching 
up  first  one  foot  and  then  the  other,  and  some- 
times taking  hold  with  its  bill.     When  eating,  it 
holds  its  food  in  its  claw,  biting  off  pieces  to  suit  it. 

8.  When  wild,  the  voice  of  the  parrot  is  a  loud, 
unpleasant  scream,    and   it   does  not  forget   this 
scream  in  its  new  home.      But  it  also  learns  to 
talk,  and  it  may  be  taught  to  say  many  words  as 
plainly  as  boys  or  girls  speak. 

9.  Parrots  can  whistle,  and  some  have  been 
taught  to  sing.     They  need  good  care,  which  they 
repay  by  their  pleasant  ways  and  curious  tricks. 
Some  of  the  parrot  kind  are  called  paroquets,  and 
some  are  called  cockatoos. 

10.  This  curious  story  is  told  of  a  parrot :  One 
day,  Sarah,  a  little  girl  of  eight  years,  had  been 
reading  about  secret  writing  with  lemon- juice. 

11.  Not  having  any  lemon,  she  thought  she 
would  try  vinegar.     So,  after  dinner,  she  took  a 
cruet,  and  was  just  pouring  the  vinegar  into  a 
spoon,  when  her  parrot  sang  out,  "  I'll  tell  mother ! 
Turn  it  out !     Turn  it  out !  " 

12.  The  child,  thinking  the  parrot  would  really 
tell  her  mother,  threw  down  the   cruet  and  the 
spoon,  and  ran  away  to  the  nursery  as  fast  as  her 
legs  could  carry  her. 


LESSON     XX. 


63 


STORIES  ABOUT  PARROTS. 


Paroquets. 

1.  A  GKEEN  parrot,  kept  in  a  family  for  a  long 
time,  became  so  tame  that  she  had  the  free  run  of 
the  house.     When  hungry,  Polly  would  call  out, 
"  Look !  cook  !  I  want  potato  ! " 

2.  She  was  very  fond  of  potatoes,  and  if  any- 
thing else  was  put  in  her  pan  she  would  throw  it 
out,  and  scream  at  the  top  of  her  voice,  "  Won't 
have  it !     Turn  it  out ! " 

3.  The  children  in  the  house  were  all  girls,  and 
Polly  for  some  reason  had  taken  a  great  dislike  to 
boys.     One  day  some  boys  came  on  a  visit,  and, 


64 


LESSON     XX.  —  (Continued.) 


as  boys  do,  made  a  great  noise.  This  was  too 
much  for  Polly,  who  screamed  out,  "  Sarah !  Sa- 
rah !  here's  a  hullaballoo  !  " 

4.  Polly  was  very  fond  of  the  mistress  of  the 

house,  and  was  always 
on  the  lookout  for  her 
at  the  breakfast-table. 

5.  If  she  did  not 
come  down  before  the 
meal  was  begun,  Polly 
would  say,  in  the 
most  piteous  tone, 
"Where's  dear 
mother  ?  Is  not 
dear  mother  well  ? " 
Another  parrot  had 
learned  to  sing  "Buy  a 
Broom"  just  like  a  child. 
If  she  made  a  mistake,  she 
would  cry  out,  "  O  la ! "  burst  out  laughing,  and 
begin  again  on  another  key. 

7.  This  parrot  laughed  in  such  a  hearty  way 
that  for  your  life  you  could  not  help  joining  with 
her,  and  then  she  would  cry  out,  "  Don't  make  me 
laugh  !     I  shall  die  !  I  shall  die  ! " 

8.  Next  she  will  cry  ;  and  if  you  say,  "Poor 


6. 


Cockatoo. 


LESSON     X  X  .  —  (Continued.)  65 


Poll,  what  is  the  matter  ? "  she  says,  "  So  bad !  so 
bad  !  Got  a  bad  cold  !  "  After  crying  some  time, 
she  grows  more  quiet,  makes  a  noise  like  drawing 
a  long  breath,  and  says,  "  Better  now,"  and  then 
begins  to  laugh. 

9.  If  any  one  vexes  her,  she  begins  to  cry;   if 
pleased,  she  laughs.     If  she  hears  any  one  cough 
or  sneeze,  she  says,  "  What  a  bad  cold  !  " 

10.  Here  is  a  story  which  a  boy  tells  of  a  par- 
rot :  "  Poll  was  a  great  friend  of  mine,  and  had 
been  in  the  house  ever  since  I  could  remember. 

11.  "Offy  was  a  pug-dog,  so  fat  that  a  little 
way  off  he  looked  like  a  muff  to  which  some  one 
had  tied  a  tail.      I  hated  Offy,  for  he  was  always 
barking  at  me,  and  I  think  he  knew  I  was  afraid 
of  him.      Poll  hated  Offy,   too,   and  with   good 
reason. 

12.  "The  pug  was  always  sneaking  round,  and 
stealing  the  cake  which  Poll  had  laid  aside  for  her 
supper.     Poll  missed  her  cake  and  was  furious, 
but  the  dog  licked  his  chops  and  laughed. 

13.  "One  day  Poll  hid  herself  on  the  top  of 
the  cupboard  and  watched.     Offy  came  as  usual 
to  steal  her  cake,  when  she  pounced  on  his  back 
and  gave  him  such  a  drubbing  that  he  never  stole 
any  more  from  her." 


Birds  of  Prey, 


LESSON     XXI. 


67 


BIRDS  OF  PREY. 


robin,  a  wren,  or  a  dove, 

2.  This  robber 
is  the  hawk.  An- 
other robber,  larger 
and  stronger  than 
the  hawk,  is  the 
eagle,  which  we  see 
on  the  opposite 
page.  Let  us  look 
at  thenio 


1.  SOME- 
TIMES we  see 
a  bird  come 
sweeping 
down  into  the 
farm-yard  and 
seize  a  chicken 
and  fly  away 
with  it,  and 
sometimes  we 
see  the  same 
bird  pounce 
down  upon  a 
and  carry  it  off. 


68 


LESSON     XX  I .  —  (Continued.) 


3.  They  are  covered  with  mottled  black  and 
white    feathers,   which    make    them    look    gray. 
In   some   kinds   of   hawks,  the   breast   is  nearly 
white. 

4.  They  have  very  strong  wings,  and  can  fly 

far  and  fast  with- 
out being  tired. 
The  beak  is  short, 
strong,  and  point- 
ed, and  hooked  at 
the  end.  It  is  made 
so  that  it  can  easily 
tear  flesh  from  the 
bones  of  animals. 

5.  The  claws,  or 
talons,  are  strong, 
sharp,  and  hooked, 
and  the  leg  above, 
is  short  and  strong. 

6.  The  hawk  preys  upon  chickens,  the  smaller 
birds,  squirrels,  and   other  small   animals.      The 
eagle  will  carry  off  hens,  turkeys,  rabbits,  lambs, 
and  the  like.     They  have  been  known  to  carry  off 
a  baby. 

7.  The  hawk  and  the  eagle  seize  their  prey, 
not  with  their  beaks,  but  with  their  talons.     They 


LESSON     XXI.  —  ( Continued.}  69 


drive  their  long,  sharp  nails  into  the  flesh,  and  the 
chicken  or  rabbit  is  dead  in  a  few  minutes. 

8.  They  carry  their  prey  to  their  nests,  and 
there  they  hold  it  in  their  talons,  and,  with  their 
beaks,  tear  off  the  flesh,  which  they  eat,  and  feed 
to  their  young. 

9.  Both  the  hawk  and  the  eagle  have  sharp 
eyes,  and  they  can  see  a  long  distance.      If  we 
should  see  an  eagle  in  a  cage,  we  would  find  that 
its  eyes  are  bright  and  a  deep  yellow  in  color;  but 
they  look  wild  and  cruel,  and  we  do  not  like  to  go 
very  near  it. 

10.  The  fish-hawk  preys  upon  fish.     He  sails 
slowly  over  the  water  until  his  sharp  eyes  see  a 
fish,  and  then  he   dives   down   so   straight   and 
swift  that  he  rarely  misses. 

11.  Sometimes,  when  he  comes  up  from  the 
water,  an  old  eagle  that  has  been  on  the  watch 
pounces  upon  him.     The  hawk  tries  to  get  away, 
but  the  eagle  soon  overtakes  him. 

12.  With  an  angry  scream  the  hawk  drops  the 
fish,  and  the  eagle  swoops  downward  so  quickly 
that  he  catches  the  fish  before  it  reaches  the  water. 
With  his  prey  in  his  talons,  he  then  soars  away  to 
his  nest  in  the  tree-tops,  or  high  up  among  the 
rocks  on  the  mountain-side. 


70 


LESSON     XXII. 


LONG  LEGS  WITH  FEATHERS. 

1.  WE  have 
here  the  pict- 
ure of   a   her- 
on, a  very  cu- 
rious bird.     It 
has  long  legs, 
a  large  body,  a 
long  neck,  and 
a  long  pointed 
bill. 

2,  Its   toes 
are    long    and 
pointed,    and 

when  spread  out  they  cover  a  large  space.  It  can 
turn  its  neck  and  bill  so  that  sometimes  it  looks 
as  if  it  would  wring  its  own  neck  off. 

3.  The  heron  lives  on  frogs  and  fish.    With  its 
long  legs  it  can  wade  out  in  the  shallow  water, 
and  its  toes  spread  out  so  it  does  not  sink  in  the 
mud. 

4.  When   ready   for   breakfast,   it   wades    in 
where  the  water  is  half-leg  deep.     Then  it  stands 
so  still  that  the  fish,  the  frogs,  and  the  water-rats 
will  swim  all  about  its  legs. 


LESSON     XXI  V.  — (Continued.}  7  1 

_  / 

5.  All   at   once,    as   quick   as   a   flash,    down 
plunges  the  beak,  and  up  comes  a  frog  from  the 
water,   and   down   it  goes,  whole,  into   the   long 
throat.     A  n  - 

other  comes 
along,  and 
goes  the  same 
way. 

6.  When 
it    has    had 
enough,     it 
steps    ashore, 
cleans      its 
feathers   with 
its   long    bill, 
and    goes    to 

sleep  standing  on  one  leg.  Its  middle  toe  has  a 
double  nail,  and  with  this  it  scratches  off  the  down 
that  sticks  to  its  bill  after  cleaning  its  feathers. 

7.  The  heron  flies  high  in  the  air.     When  fly- 
ing, its  legs  extend  out  straight  behind,  and  its 
neck  curls  over  and  rests  on  its  back. 

8.  The  stork  is  another  bird  with  long  legs  that 
wades  in  the  water  and  eats  frogs  and  fish.    In  Hol- 
land, the  stork  is  so  tame  that  it  lives  in  the  farm- 
yard, and  often  builds  its  nest  on  the  house-tops. 


72 


LESSON     XXIII. 


BO-PEEP  AND   THE  ROOK, 


LITTLE  Bo-peep  sat  down  on  a  heap 
Of  hay — she  was  tired  with  running ; 

When  up  came  a  rook,  who  at  her  did  look, 
And  nodded  his  head  and  looked  cunning. 

Little  Bo-peep  said,  "  Why  do  you  keep 

So  near  to  me  every  day,  sir  ? 
With  your  very  sharp  beak,  pray  what  do  you 
seek, 

For  you  always  seem  just  in  my  way,  sir  ? " 


LESSON     XXIII  .  —  (Continued.)  73 


"  Little  Bo-peep,  it  is  your  sheep, 
Not  you,  that  I  come  to  see,  ma'am ; 

Their  wool  is  so  soft,  that  I  want  it  oft 

In   my   nest   for  my   young    ones   and   me, 


ma'am." 


Said  little  Bo-peep,  "  The  wool  you  may  sweep 
From  the  hedges  and  many  a  thorn,  sir ; 

But  don't  make  your  attacks  upon  my  sheep's 

backs, 
For  I  will  not  have  their  wool  torn,  sir." 

The  rook  he  cawed,  and  he  hummed  and  hawed, 
And  muttered,  "  What  matter,  what  matter  ? " 

Bo-peep  she  said,  "  Go — I  have  said  no,  no ; 
So  it's  useless  for  you  to  chatter." 


"THERE'S  a  merry  brown  thrush  sitting  up  in 

the  tree ; 

He's  singing  to  me !     He's  singing  to  me  ! " 
"  And  what  does  he  say,  little  girl,  little  boy  3 " 
"  '  Oh,  the  world's  running  over  with  joy ! 

Don't  you  hear  ?     Don't  you  see  ? 

Hush  !     Look  !     In  my  tree 

I'm  as  happy  as  happy  can  be.' ': 


74 


LESSON     XXIV. 


THE  MOUSE  AND  ITS  WAYS. 


1.  HERE  are  some  of  our  near 
neighbors,  little  fellows  in   fur, 
who  are  so  very  friendly  that 
they  visit   us  by  night  and  by 
day,  and  seem  as  much  at  home 
in  our  house  as  we  are. 

2.  When,  in   the   night,  we 


LESSON     X  X  I  V.  —  (Continued.}  75 


hear  tiny  feet  as  they  patter  over  the  floor,  or  scam- 
per across  the  pillow,  or  we  find  in  the  morning  that 
the  loaf  for  breakfast  has  been  gnawed  and  spoiled, 
we  are  not  apt  to  feel  friendly  toward  the  mouse. 

3.  But,  as  he  stands  here  by  the  trap,  let  us 
take  a  good  look  at  him. 

We   find  that  he  has  a 

coat  of  fine  fur,  which  he 

always  keeps  clean,  and  a 

long  tail  that  has  no  hair. 

He  has  whiskers  like  the 

cat ;  sharp  claws,  so  that 

he  can  run  up  the  side 

of  a  house,  or  climb  anything  that  is  a  little  rough  ; 

and  eyes  that  can  see  in  the  night. 

4.  He  has  large  ears,  so  that  he  can  hear  the 
faintest  sound ;  and  short  legs,  so  that  he  can  creep 
into  the  smallest  hole. 

5.  His  nose  is  pointed,  and  his  under  jaw  is 
shorter  than  the  upper  one.    In  front,  on  each  jaw, 
he  has  two  sharp  teeth,  shaped  like  the  edge  of  a 
chisel,  and  these  he  uses  to  gnaw  with. 

6.  These  teeth  are  growing  all  the  while ;  and 
if  he  does  not  gnaw  something  hard  nearly  every 
day,  so  as  to  wear  them  off,  they  will  soon  become 
so  long  that  he  can  not  use  them. 


78 


LESSON      XXV. 


STORIES  ABOUT  MICE. 


When  the  cat's  away 
The  mice  will  play. 

1.  MICE  increase  so  fast  that,  if  we  did  not 
have  some  way  to  destroy  them,  they  would  soon 
overrun  the  house,  so  that  we  could  not  live  in  it. 

2.  They  have  their  homes  in  the  hollow  waHs7 
and  can  go  about  from  one  part  of  the  house  to  the 
other  without  being  seen ;  and  when  they  smell  food 
they  gnaw  a  hole  through  the  wall  to  get  at  it. 


LESSON     XXV.-  (Continued.}  77 

3.  They  are   playful  little  animals,  and  may 
easily  be  tamed.     When  a  mouse  comes  into  the 
room  where  people  live,  it  is  ready  to  run  away  at 
oncej^anythingjoaoyes. 

4.  But  if  all  are  still,  it  will  scamper  about  the 
floor,  and  loo^over  and  smell  everything  in  tne* 
room.     The  next  day  it  will  come  back,  and  finally 
it  willj)lay  about  the  room  as  if  no  one  were  there. 

5.  The  mice  that    run  about  the  house  have 
gray  coats  ;  but  some  mice  are  white,  with  pink 
eyes,  and  these  are  often  tamed  and  kept  as  pets. 

6.  A  lady  once  tamed  a  common  gray  mouse,  so 
that  it  would  eat  out  of  her  hand.     She  also  had 
a  white  mouse  in  a  cage.^ 

"  7.  The  gray  mouse  would_.he~  very  angry  when 
he  saw  the  lady  pet  the  white  mouse  ;  and^one  dav 
he  some  way  got  into.the  cage,  and,_w^en  t&laHy 
came  back  into  tne  room  she  found  the  white 


8.  Music  sometimes  seems  to  have  a  strange 
effect  upon  a  mouse.  At  one  time,  when  a  man 
was  playing  upon  his  violin,  a  mouse  came  out  of 
his  hole  and  danced  about  the  floor.  He  seemed 
almost  frantic  with  delight,  and  kept  time  to  the 
music  for  several  minutes.  At  last  he  stopped,  fell 
over  on  the  floor,  and  they  found  he  was  dead. 


78 


LESSON     XXVI. 


WHITE-PAW  STARTS  TO  SEE  THE  WORLD. 


1.  WHITE-PAW  was  a  young  mouse  that  lived 
with  his  mother.     Their  home  was  in  a  barn,  be- 
hind some  sacks  of  corn,  and  a  very  nice  home  it 
was. 

2.  When  a  sunbeam  flashed  in  upon  them  at 
midday,  "  That  was  the  sun,"  said  Mrs.  Mouse. 
When  a  ray  of  the  moon  stole  quietly  in,  "  That  is 
the  moon,"  said  the  simple-minded  creature,  and 
thought  she  was  very  wise  to  know  so  much. 


LESSON     XXVI.  —  (Continued.)  79 

3.  But  little  White-paw  was  not  so  contented 
as  his  mother.     As  he  frisked  and  played  in  his 
one  ray  of  sunshine  or  one  gleam  of  moonlight,  he 
had  queer  little  fancies. 

4.  One  morning,  while  at  breakfast  on  some 
kernels  of  corn  and  sweet  apples  which  his  mother 
had  brought  home,  he  asked : 

5.  "  Mother,  what  is  the  world  ? " 

6.  "  A  great,  terrible  place  ! "  was  the  answer, 
and  Mrs.  Mouse  looked  very  grave  indeed. 

7.  "How  do  you  know,  mother?    Have  you 
ever  been  there  ? "  asked  the  youngster. 

8.  "  No,  child ;  but  your  father  was  lost  in  the 
great  world,  my  son,"  and  Mrs.  Mouse's  voice  had 
a  little  shake  in  it. 

9.  "  Ah  ! "  said  the  son,  "  that  was  for  want  of 
knowing  better." 

10.  "Knowing   better!      Why,   he    was    the 
wisest  mouse  alive  !  "  said  the  faithful  Mrs.  Mouse. 

11.  "  I  could  not  have  been  alive  then,"  thought 
White-paw   to    himself.       Then    he   said   aloud, 
"Mother,  I  have  made   up  my  mind   to  go  and 
see  the  world ;  so  good-by  ! " 

12.  His  mother  wept.     She  tried  to  have  him 
stay  at  home  and  be  content — but  all  in  vain;  so 
she  gave  him  a  great  hug,  and  he  was  off. 


80 


LESSON     XXVII. 


WHAT  THE  MICE  SAW  IN  THE  FARM- YARD 


1.  HE  had  not  gone  many  steps  when  he  met 
Mr.  Gaffer  Graybeard,  a  wise  old  mouse,  and  a 
great  friend  to  the  family. 

2.  "Well,   where   are   you   off   to,    Mr.  Pert- 
nose  ? "  he  asked,  as  the  young  traveler  was  whisk- 
ing by.   "  I'm  off  to  see  the  world,"  was  the  answer. 

3.  "Then  good-by,  for  I  never  expect  to  see 
you  again ;  but  take  an  old  mouse's  advice,  and  be- 
ware of  mouse-traps."     "  What  are  mouse-traps  ? " 


LESSON     XXVII.  —  (Continued.)  8  1 

asked  White-paw.      "You  will  know  when  you 
see  them,"  was  the  answer. 

4.  White-paw  went  on  his  way,  and  just  out- 
side he  met  another  young  mouse  who  had  also 
started  to  see  the  world,  and  the  two  went  on  to- 
gether. 

5.  "  Oh,  how  big  the  world  is ! "  said  White- 
paw,  as  they  went  into  the  farm-yard,  and  began 
to  look  about  them. 

6.  "And   what   queer   creatures   live   in    the 
world ! "  said  the  other,  as  the  cocks  crowed,  the 
hens  clucked,  the  chickens  peeped,  the  cow  lowed, 
the  sheep  bleated,  the  pigs  grunted,  and  the  old 
house-dog  barked. 

7.  "  If  we  are  to  find  out  about  the  world,  we 
must  ask  questions,"  said  White-paw. 

8.  So  the  two  friends  went  about,  stopping 
every  now  and  then  to  admire  or  wonder  at  the 
new  things  they  saw  every  moment. 

9.  Soon  they  came  across  a  friendly-looking  pig. 
"  Please,  sir,"  asked  the  wee  simple  things,  "  are  you 
a  mouse  ? " 

10.  The  pig  looked  down  to  them  through  his 
"  specs  "  as  he  heard  the  question  in  the  tiny  little 
squeaking  voice,  and  he  grunted  a  little  as  he  re- 
plied : 


82  LESSON     XXVII.  —  (Continued.) 


11.  "  Yes,  if  you  like  to  call  me  so,"  and  the 
two  friends  went  on. 

12.  In  a  little  while  they  came  up  where  the 
old  cow  was  feeding ;  and  White-paw,  taking  off 
his  hat,  said,  "  Please,  are  you  a  mouse  ? " 

13.  The  old  cow  was  too  busy  to  answer  such 
questions,  but  she  shook  her  head  in  such  a  way 
that  the  travelers  were  glad  to  get  off  safe. 

14.  "There  are  great  friendly  mice,  and  great 
unfriendly  mice,  in  the  world  ! "  said  White-paw,  as 
they  went  on  their  way. 

15.  Next  they  met  a  motherly  old  hen,  who 
was  busy  in  scratching  up  food  for  her  chickens ; 
and  White-paw  asked,  "  Please,  ma'am,  are  you  a 
mouse?"     "We  don't  mind  what  folks  call  us," 
said  the  old  hen,  giving  them  a  friendly  wink. 

16.  As  they  went  on  they  learned  a  great  many 
things  about  the  world ;  but  as  yet  White-paw  had 
not  heard  one  word  about  a  mouse-trap. 

17.  Having  gone  around  the  farm-yard,  White- 
paw  and  his  friend  went  through  the  gate  toward 
the  house.     Here  they  met  the  dog,  and  asked  the 
same  question  that  they  had  asked  before. 

18.  But  the  dog  barked  and  snapped  so  that 
they  could  not  make  him  hear,  and  they  ran  away 
in  terror. 


LESSON     XXVIII. 


83 


WHAT   WHITE-PAW  SAW  IJV  THE  KITCHEN. 


1.  IN  their  haste  the  two  friends  bolted  into 
the  kitchen  of  the  farm-house,  where  an  old  tabby- 
cat  lay  dozing  before  the  fire.     But  when  they 
came  in  she  arose  to  meet  them. 

2.  "  What  a  polite  fat  mouse  !  "  thought  White- 
paw.     "  Please,  ma'am—       But  pussy's  eyes  were 
fixed  upon  him  with  a  horrid  glare,  and  he  could 
not  go  on. 

3.  Alas  !  his  poor  little  friend !     There  was  a 


84  LESSON     X  X  V  I  I  I.  —  (Continued.) 


cry  and  a  crunching  of  bones,  and  White-paw  just 
escaped  through  a  hole  into  the  pantry. 

4.  When  he  had  in  part  got  over  his  fright,  he 
sinelled  toasted  cheese — something  he  had  heard  of 
but  never  tasted.     He  sniffed  about,  and  soon  saw 
it  in  a  little  round  hole. 

5.  By  this  time  he  was  very  hungry,  and  he 
reached  out  for  the  dainty  morsel ;  but  there  was  a 
sudden  click,  and  he  turned  back — but  too  late ! 
His  tail  and  one  of  his  legs  were  caught  by  the 
cruel  teeth  of  a  trap. 

6.  He  pulled  with  all  his  might,  but  could  not 
get  away.     He  heard  a  little  squeak,  and  an  old 
mouse  came  limping  up  with  only  three  legs. 

7.  "  Pull  hard,  my  son ;  better  lose  a  leg  and 
tail  than  your  life.    See  !    I  was  caught  like  you. 
How  came  you  here  ? "  he  asked. 

8.  "  I  came  to  see  the  world,  and  'tis  a  terri- 
ble place  !  "    As  White-paw  spoke,  he  pulled  him- 
self free,  but  left  one  paw  and  the  point  of  his  tail 
in  the  trap. 

9.  The   two   hopped  off   together,   and,  after 
some  friendly  advice  from  the  old  mouse,  White- 
paw  limped  away  to  his  home,  and  soon  found 
himself  by  his  mother's  side,  where  he  could  have 
his  wounds  dressed,  and  rest  in  peace. 


LESSON     XXIX. 


WHITE-PAW'S  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  GREAT 
WORLD. 


1.  "My  dear  son,  what  is  the  world  like?" 
asked  Mrs.  Mouse,  after  she  had  hugged  White- 
paw,  and  set  his  supper  before  him. 

2.  "  Oh,  it's  a  grand  place !     There  are  great 
black  mice,  and  great  white  ones,  and  great  spot- 
ted ones,  and  great  friendly  mice  with  long  noses, 
and  great  uncivil  mice  with  horns. 

3.  "  Then  there  are  queer  mice  with  only  two 


86  LESSON     XXIX.  —  ( Continued.) 


legs,  and  some  terrible  mice  that  make  a  great 
noise."  At  this  moment,  Gaffer  Graybeard  came 
in,  and  White-paw  said,  "  Sir,  I've  learned  what  a 
mouse-trap  is."  "  Ah  !  then,"  said  the  sage,  "  you've 
not  seen  the  world  in  vain." 


THREE  BLIND  MICE. 


THREE  blind  mice  !     Three  blind  mice  ! 

See  how  they  run  !     See  how  they  run  ! 
They  all  ran  after  the  farmer's  wife ; 
She  cut  off  their  tails  with  a  carving-knife. 
Did  you  ever  see  such  a  thing  in  your  life 

As  three  blind  mice  ? 


LESSON     XXX.  87 


THE  DEATH  OF  POOR  PUSS. 

"  HERE  lies  poor  Puss  !  "- 

"  Who  saw  her  die  ? "  asked  Grandmother  Mouse, 
Just  peeping  forth  from  her  hole  of  a  house, 
"  I,"  said  Tommy  Titmouse,  "  I  saw  her  die ; 
I  think  she  was  choked  while  eating  a  fly." 

"  Who'll  dig  her  grave  ? "  asked  Granny  again  ; 
In  her  voice,  strange  to  say,  there  was  no  tone 

of  pain. 

"  The  honest  old  dormouse,  out  in  the  wood, 
He'd  dig  a  good  grave,  if  any  one  could." 

"  Who'll  be  the  bearers  ? "    The  grandchildren  all 
Were  ready  at  once,  at  sound  of  the  call. 
u  We'll  carry  Puss,  since  she  can't  carry  us, 
And  bury  her  deep,  without  any  fuss." 

One  seized  her  fore  paw,  another  her  tail, 
Another  her  ear,  to  make  sure  not  to  fail. 
Then  off  they  all  ran,  for  Puss  winked  her  eye, 
And  sprang   to  her  feet,   as  the  mice  squeaked 
"  Good-by." 


LESSON     XXXI.  89 


FIELD-MICE. 

1.  SOME  kinds  of  mice  live  in  the  fields  and 
woods,  and  never  come  into  the  house.     The  tiny 
little  harvest-mouse  has  its  home  in  the  grain  or 
thick  grass,  and  feeds  upon  grain  and  insects. 

2.  It  makes  a  nest  of  grass  neatly  woven  to- 
gether, and  places  it  on  the  stalks,  about  a  foot  from 
the  ground,  where  it  is  out  of  the  way  of  the  wet. 

3.  The  nest  is  round,  and  about  the  size  of  a 
large  orange.    When  the  mother  mouse  goes  away, 
she  closes  up  the  door  of  her  nest,  so  no  one  can 
see  her  little  ones. 

4.  The  harvest-mouse  runs  up  the  corn  and 
grass  stalks  easily.     In  climbing,  it  holds  on  by  its 
tail  as  well  as  by  its  claws.     The  way  it  comes 
down  from  its  nest  is  very  curious.     It  twists  its 
tail  about  the  stalk  and  slides  down. 

5.  Another  of  the  field-mice  is  the  dormouse, 
that  lives  in  the  woods.     It  has  a  bushy  tail,  and 
makes  its  nest  in  hollow  trees.     It  lives  upon  nuts 
and  fruit.     As  cold  weather  comes  on,  it  rolls  it- 
self up  in  a  ball,  and  sleeps  until  spring. 

6.  Once  a  dormouse  was  caught  and  kept  in  a 
cage,  when  it  became  quite  tame,  and  a  great  pet 
with  the  children.    One  day  it  got  out  of  its  cage, 


90 


LESSON     XXXI.  —(Continued.) 


and  the  children  hunted  all  over  the  house,  but 
could  not  find  it,  and  gave  it  up  as  lost. 

7.  The  next  day,  as  they  sat  down  to  dinner, 

a  cold  meat- 
p  i  e  was  put 
upon  the  table. 
When  it  was 
cut  open,  there 
was  the  dor- 
mouse in  the 
middle,  curled 
up,  and  fast 
asleep. 

8.  The  deer- 
mouse  lives  mostly  in  the  fields,  but  it  also  makes 
its  home  in  bams  and  houses.  Its  back  and  sides 
are  of  a  slate  color,  but  the  under  part  of  its  body, 
and  its  legs  and  feet,  are  white.  It  is  sometimes 
called  the  white-footed  mouse,  or  wood -mouse.  It 
builds  a  round  nest  in  trees,  that  looks  like  a  bird's 
nest,  and  it  lives  upon  grain,  seeds,  and  nuts. 

9.  This  mouse  seems  fond  of  music,  and  once 
in  a  while  one  sings.  Its  song  is  very  sweet,  some- 
what like  that  of  a  canary,  but  not  so  loud.  Mr. 
Lockwood's  singing  mouse  would  keep  up  its  won- 
derful little  song  ten  minutes  without  stopping. 


LESSON     XXXII 


91 


HOW  THE  RAT  LOOKS  AND  LIVES. 


1.  THE  rat  looks  like  a  very  large  mouse.     It 
has  the  same  kind  of  chisel-teeth,  sharp  claws,  and 
long  tail,  and  it  lives  very  much  in  the  same  way 
as  a  mouse. 

2.  It  eats  all  kinds  of  food,  and  will  live  where 
most  other  animals  would  starve.     Its  teeth  are 
strong,  and  it  can  gnaw  its  way  into  the  hardest 
nuts,  or  through  thick  boards. 

3.  The  claws  of  the  rat  are  sharp,  so  that  it 
can  run  up  the  side  of  a  house,  or  up  any  steep 
place  where  its  claws  will  take  hold.     When  at 


92  LESSON     XXXII  .  —  (Continued.-) 

the  bottom  of  a  barrel,  or  kettle  of  iron,  brass,  or 
tin,  it  can  not  climb  out. 

4.  The  hind  feet  of  the  rat  are  made  in  a  cu- 
rious way  :  they  can  turn  round  so  that  the  claws 
point  back.    This  enables  a  rat,  when  it  runs  down 
the  side  of  a  house,  to  turn  its  feet  around  and 
hold  on,  while  it  goes  down  head  foremost. 

5.  The  tail  of  the  rat  is  made  up  of  rings,  and 
is  covered  with  scales  and  very  short  hair.     The 
rat  uses  it  like  a  hand  to  hold  himself  up  and  to 
take  hold  of  things. 

6.  Eats  live  in  houses  and  barns,  or  wherever 
they  can  get  enough  to  eat.     In  cities,  they  get 
into  drains,  and  eat  up  many  things  which  would 
be  harmful  if  left  to  decay. 

7.  They  are  great  pests  in  the  house,  running 
about  in  the  walls,  gnawing  through  the  ceilings, 
and  destroying  food  and  clothing. 

8.  When  rats  get  into  a  barn,  they  are  very  de- 
structive.     They  eat   up  grain,  and  kill  young 
chickens  ;  and  they  often  come  in  droves,  when  the 
pigs  are  fed,  to  share  the  food. 

9.  Eats  increase  very  fast.     Each  mother  rat 
produces  fifty  young  ones  in  a  year ;  and  if  we  did 
not  take  great  pains  to  destroy  them,  they  would 
drive  us  out  of  our  homes. 


LESSON     XXXIII. 


93 


STORIES  ABOUT  THE  RAT. 


1.  EATS  are  very  fond  of  eggs;  but 
they  do  not  like  to  be  disturbed  while  eat- 
ing, and  so  they  contrive  to  carry  the  eggs 
to  their  nests,  where  they  can  enjoy  their 
feast  in  safety. 

2.  In  carrying  off  eggs,  several  rats  will  often 
go  together.     A  rat  will  curl  his  tail  around  an 
egg,  and  roll  it  along.    Coming  to  a  staircase,  they 
will  hand  the  egg  one  to  another  so  carefully  as 
not  to  break  it. 

3.  A  lady  once  watched  the  rats,  which  were 
at  work  at  her  egg-basket.     One  rat  lay  down  on 


94  LESSON     XXXIII.  —(Continued.) 


his  back,  and  took  an  egg  in  his  arms.  The  other 
rats  then  seized  him  by  the  head,  and  dragged  him 
off,  egg  and  all. 

4.  Rats  can  easily  be  tamed,  and  even  a  dog 
can  scarcely  love  its  master  better  than  a  rat  does 
when  it  is  treated  kindly.     Mr.  Wood  tells  this 
story  of  some  tame  rats : 

5.  "  Some  young  friends  of  mine  have  a  couple 
of  rats  which  they  have  tamed.     One,  quite  white, 
with  pink  eyes,  is  called  'Snow,7  and  the  other, 
which  is  white,  with  a  brown  head  and  breast,  is 
named  '  Brownie.' 

6.  "  The  rats  know  their  names  as  well  as  any 
dog  could  do,  and  answer  to  them  quite  as  readily. 

7.  "  They  are  not  kept  shut  up  in  a  cage,  but 
are  as  free  to  run  about  the  house  as  if  they  were 
dogs  or  cats. 

8.  "  They  have  been  taught  a  great  number  of 
pretty  tricks.     They  play  with  their  young  master 
and  mistress,  and  run  about  with  them  in  the 
garden. 

9.  "They  sit  on  the  table  at  meal-times,  and 
take  anything  that  is  offered  to  them,  holding  the 
food  in  their  fore  paws  and  nibbling  it ;  but  never 
stealing  from  the  plates. 

10.  "They  are  very  fond  of  butter,  and  they 


LESSON     XXXIII.  —  (Continued?)  95 


will  allow  themselves  to  be  hung  up  by  the  hind 
feet  and  lick  a  piece  of  butter  from  a  plate,  or  a 
finger. 

11.  "Sometimes  these  rats  play  a  funny  game. 
They  are  placed  on  the  hat-stand  in  the  hall,  or 
put  into  a  hat  and  left  there  until  their  owners  go 
up-stairs. 

1 2.  "  They  wait  until  they  are  called,  when  they 
scramble  down  to  the  floor,  gallop  across  the  hall 
and  up  the  stairs  as  fast  as  they  can  go. 

13.  "  They  then  hunt  until  they  find  their  mas- 
ter, climb  to  his  shoulder,  and  search  every  pocket 
for  a  piece  of  bread  and  butter,  which  they  know 
is  there  for  them. 

14.  "They  are  very  clean  in  their  ways,  and 
they  are  always  washing  their  faces  and  brushing 
their  mouths  and  fur  with   their  paws,  just  as 
cats  do. 

15.  "It  is  very  amusing  to  see  them  search  the 
pockets  of  those  they  know:  diving  into  them, 
sniffing   at   every  portion,   and   climbing   out   in 
search  of  another. 

16.  "They  will   not   come   at   the   call  of   a 
stranger,  nor  play  any  of  their  tricks  with  him  ; 
but  they  will  allow  themselves  to  be  stroked  and 
patted,  and  they  never  try  to  bite." 


96 


LESSON     XXXIV. 


ABOUT  RABBITS. 

1.  WE  here 
come  to  the 
rabbit,  one  of 
our  innocent 
and  harmless 
friends  that  is 
a  great  pet 
with  children. 
It  is  very  tim- 
id and  easily 
scared,  but 
when  treated  kindly  it  becomes  tame. 

2.  The  rabbit  is  about  the  size  of  a  cat,  and 
has  a  short  tail.     The  wild  gray  rabbit  is  not  so 
large  as  the  tame  rabbit  which  we  have  about  the 
house. 

3.  The  rabbit  has  sharp  gnawing-teeth  like  the 
rat  and  mouse,  and  it  gets  its  food  and  eats  it  in 
the  same  way. 

4.  It  eats  the  leaves  and  stalks  of  plants,  and 
is  very  fond  of  cabbage,  lettuce,  and  the  tender 
leaves  of  beets  and  turnips.     It  sometimes  does 
much  damage  by  gnawing  the  bark  of  young  fruit- 
trees. 


LESSON     XXXIV.  —  (Continued.)  97 


5.  It  has  whiskers  like  the  cat,  so  that  it  can 
crawl  into  holes  without  making  a  noise. 

6.  Its  fore  feet  are  armed  with  strong,  blunt 
claws.     It  can  not  climb,  but  it  is  able  to  dig  holes 
in  the  earth. 

7.  Our  wild   rabbit  lives  in  the  grass,  or  in 
holes  which  it  finds  in  stumps  and  hollow  trees, 
and  among  stones ;  but  the  English  rabbit  digs  a 
hole  in  the  soft  ground  for  its  home. 

8.  The  holes  that  the  rabbits  dig  are  called 
burrows  /  and  where  a  great  many  rabbits  have  bur- 
rows close  together,  the  place  where  they  live  is 
called  a  warren. 

9.  The  burrows  have  two  or  more  doors,  so  that 
if  a  weasel  or  some  other  enemy  goes  in  at  one 
door,  the  rabbit  runs  out  at  the  other.     In  a  war- 
ren, many  burrows  open  into  one  another,  forming 
quite  a  village  under  ground. 

10.  The  rabbits  choose   a  sandy  place  for  a 
warren,  near  a  bank,  where  they  can  dig  easily, 
and  where  the  water  will  run  off.    In  these  homes 
they  sleep  most  of  the  time  during  the  day,  and 
come  out  by  night  to  feed  on  such  plants  as  they 
can  find.     When  wild,  the  dew  gives  them  drink 
enough ;  but  when  fed  with  dry  grain  food,  they 

need  water. 

7 


98 


LESSON     XXXV. 


MORE  ABOUT  RABBITS. 


1.  THE  rabbit  has  large  ears,  and  can  hear  the 
slightest  sound.     When  feeding  or  listening,  the 
ears  stand  up  or  lean  forward ;  but  when  running, 
the  ears  lie  back  on  its  neck. 

2.  When  the  rabbit  hears  any  sound  to  alarm 
it,  it  never  stops  to  see  what  is  the  matter,  but 
scuds  away  to  its  hole,  plunges  in,  and  waits  there 
until  it  thinks  the  danger  has  passed  away. 

3.  Then  it  comes  to  the  mouth  of  the  burrow, 
and  puts  out  its  long  ears.     If  it  does  not  hear 
anything,  it  raises  its  head  a  little  more,  and  peeps 


LESSON     XXX  V.  —  (Continued.}  99 

out.      Then,  if  it  does  not  see  anything  out  of 
the  way,  it  comes  out  again  and  begins  to  feed. 

4.  Rabbits  increase  so  fast  that  if  they  were 
not  kept  down  they  would  soon  eat  up  all  the 
plants  of  our  gardens  and  fields.    So  a  great  many 
animals  and   birds  feed  upon  them,  and  a  great 
many  are  killed  for  their  meat  and  fur. 

5.  When  first  born,  the  little  rabbits  are  blind, 
like  puppies  and  kittens,  and   their   bodies  are 
naked.    The  mother  rabbit  makes  a  warm  nest  for 
them  of  dried  leaves,  and  she  lines  it  with  fur 
from  her  own  body. 

6.  In  about  ten  or  twelve  days  the  little  rab- 
bits are  able  to  see,  and  in  a  few  weeks  more  they 
are  quite  able  to  take  care  of  themselves. 

7.  The  rabbits  that  we  have  for  pets  are  of  va- 
rious colors,  but  mostly  white  or  black,  or  part 
white  and  part  black.     They  do  not  dig  into  the 
earth  as  the  wild  ones  do,  but  they  love  to  have 
their  homes  in  snug  little  places,  like  holes. 

8.  The  hind  legs  of  the  rabbit  are  longer  than 
its   fore   ones,  and,  instead   of   walking,  it   hops 
along.      When   it   runs,  it  springs  forward  with 
great  leaps,  and  gets  over  the  ground  very  fast. 

9.  Pet  rabbits  that  have  large  ears  sell  most 
readily.     One  of  the  rabbits,  in  the  picture,  looks 


100 


LESSON     XXX  V  .  —  (Continued.} 


very  curious  with  one  long  ear  lopped  down  over 
his  eye,  and  the  other  standing  up  straight. 

10.  When   they  live   out   in   the  woods  and 
fields,  rabbits  have  many  cruel  foes.     One  of  the 
worst  of  these  is  the  owl,  who,  prowling  about  in 
the  dark,  springs  upon  the  poor  rabbit,  and  breaks 
its  neck  with  one  fierce  stroke  of  its  sharp  bill. 

11.  As  a  rabbit  can  not  defend  itself  by  fight- 
ing, it  has  long  ears  to  detect  danger,  and  swift 
feet  to  get  away  from  an  enemy.     When  alarmed, 
away  it  goes,  with  a  hop,  skip,  and  jump,  and  like 
a  flash  passes  out  of  sight. 


LESSON     XXXVI, 


101 


HOW  THE  HARE  LIVES. 

1.  THE  hare 
looks  very 
much  like  a 
large  rabbit. 
It  has  the 
same  kind  of 
teeth,  and  eats 
the  same  kind 
of  food.  Its 
legs  are  longer 
than  those  of 

the   rabbit,  and  it  runs  in  the  same  way,  only 

faster. 

2.  It  does  not  burrow  in  the  ground  nor  crawl 
into  holes,  but  it  makes  its  home  in  tufts  of  long 
grass.    As  it  lies  in  the  same  place  for  a  long  time, 
it  makes  a  little  hollow,  which  is  called  its  form. 

3.  It  has  larger  ears  than  the  rabbit,  and  seems 
always  listening.     It  is  very  timid,  and,  when  it 
hears  any  strange  sound,  away  it  goes   like  the 
wind,  running  with  long  leaps. 

4.  When  at   rest  in  its  form,  it  folds  its  legs 
under  its  body,  lays  its  ears  back  flat  on  its  neck ; 
and,  as  it  is  of  the  color  of   dried  grass,  a   per- 


1O2  LESSON     XXXVI  .—(Continued.} 


son  may  pass  by  within  a  few  feet  of  it  and  not 
see  it. 

5.  Its  upper  lip  is  divided  in  the  middle,  as  is 
also  that  of  the  rabbit.     It  sometimes  will  fight, 
and  then  it  hits  hard  blows  with  its  fore  feet,  and 
strikes  so  fast  that  its  .blows  sound  like  the  roll  of 
a  drum. 

6.  When  the  snow  falls,  the  hare  sits  in  its 
form,  and   is   covered  up.     But  its  fur  keeps  it 
warm,  and  the  heat  of  its  body  melts  the  snow 
next  to  its  skin,  so  that  it  sits  in  a  kind  of  snow- 
cave,  the  snow  keeping  off  the  cold  wind. 

7.  When  dogs  chase  a  hare,  it  runs  very  fast 
until  the  dogs  are  close  to  it,  when  it  stops  sud- 
denly.    This  it  can  do,  as  it  runs  by  leaping  with 
its  long  hind  legs. 

8.  The  dogs  can  not  stop  so  quickly,  and  run 
past.     The  hare  then  starts  off  in  another  direc- 
tion,-or  doubles,  as  we  say,  and  so  gains  upon  the 
dog.      In  this  way  it  often  escapes,  and  then  it 
goes  back  to  its  form. 

9.  The  hare  is  sometimes  tamed,  and  it  soon 
learns  to  know  its  friends ;  but  it  is  a  troublesome 
pet,  as  it  gnaws  the  legs  of  the  chairs  and  tables, 
and  destroys  the  trees  in  the  yard  by  gnawing  off 
the  bark  near  the  roots. 


ALICE'S  BUNNY. 

WOULD  you  hear  about  my  bunny, 
All  his  little  ways  so  funny  ? 

First  of  all,  then,  you  must  know, 
He  has  coat  as  white  as  snow, 
Staring  eyes  of  pink  so  pale, 
And  a  tiny,  dumpy  tail. 

Once,  he  had  a  pretty  mate, 
But  she  met  a  cruel  fate. 
Now  quite  by  himself  he  stays, 
And  contented  spends  his  days. 

He  runs  about  the  nursery  floor, 
The  chairs  and  table  clambers  o'er, 
And  nestles  down  upon  my  lap 
Beside  the  cat,  to  take  a  nap ; 

And  once,  when  I  was  in  disgrace, 
He  licked  the  tear-drops  from  my  face< 
Now,  don't  you  think  my  little  bunny 
Must  be  kind  as  well  as  funny  ? 


104 


LESSON     XXXVII 


SOMETHING  ABOUT  SQUIRRELS, 


•       :    . 


1.  HERE  comes  the  squirrel — the  little  fellow 
that  frisks  and  gambols  so  prettily  over  trees  and 
hedges,  and  that  chatters  to  us  as  we  take  a  walk 
in  the   woods  or   fields.     He  is  afraid   to  let  us 
touch  him;  but  he  will  let  us  come  quite  near, 
as  he  knows  he  can  easily  get  away. 

2.  As  we  see  him  scampering  along  on  the 
fences  or  trees,  the  first  thing  that  we  notice  is  his 
long  bushy  tail,  which  he  coils  up  over  his  back. 

3.  But  we  will  find  one  in  a  cage,  and  then  we 
will   take  a  closer  look.     We  find   that  he  has 


LESSON     XXXVII.  —  (Continued.)  IOS 

chisel-teeth,  like  the  rat  and  rabbit,  and  then  we 
know  that  Mr.  Squirrel  eats  something  that  he 
must  gnaw. 

4.  His  toes  are  not  strong,  like  those  of  the 
rat  or  rabbit,  but  they  are  long  and  slender,  and 
we  know  that  he  does  not  dig  holes  in  the  ground. 
The  nails  are  not  strong  enough  to  catch   prey, 
but  are  long,  thin,  sharp,  and  bent  at  their  tips. 

5.  Then  we  find  that  the  squirrel  can  turn  all 
his  toes  around  so  that  the  nails  point  backward, 
and  we  see  that  he  is  made  for  running  up  and 
down  trees,  where  he  has  his  home. 

6.  Now  we  see  what  he  does  with  his  sharp 
cutting-teeth.     He  lives  upon  nuts,  and  his  teeth 
are  for  gnawing  through  the  hard  shell,  to  get  at 
the  kernel  inside. 

7.  The  ears  of  the  squirrel  are  of  moderate 
size.     The  rabbit  and  hare  live  upon  the  ground, 
and,  if  they  did  not  have  large  ears  and  sharp 
hearing,  they  would  be  killed  by  dogs  and  other 
enemies.     But  the  squirrel  has  his  home  in  trees, 
out  of  reach  of  animals  that  can  not  climb ;  so  it 
does  not  need  such  sharp  hearing  to  save  itself. 

8.  When  in  his  home  in  the  trees,  the  squirrel 
feels  safe ;  so  he  curls  his  tail  over  his  body  and 
head  to  keep  warm,  and  goes  to  sleep. 


1O6 


LESSON     XXXVIII. 


MORE  ABOUT  SQUIRRELS. 

1.  As  the  squirrel  is  made 
to  climb  trees  and  live  on  nuts, 
lie  builds  his  nest  there,  and 
makes  the  tree  his  home.     He 
finds  some  hollow  place  in  the 
tree,  or  he  builds  where  some 
large  limb  branches  off,  so  that 
his  nest  can  not  well  be  seen 
from  below. 

2.  His  nest  is  made  of  dried 
leaves  and  bits  of  moss.     His 
summer  home  is  high  up   on 
the  tree,  where  he  has  plenty 
of  air ;  but  his  winter  nest  is 

as  snug  in  some  hole  as  he  can  make  it. 

3.  In  the  fall,  the  squirrel  gathers  nuts   and 
corn,   and  stores  them  up  near  his   winter  nest. 
Then,  when  cold  weather  conies  on,  he  crawls  into 
his  bed  of  leaves,  curls  up,  and  goes  to  sleep. 

4.  Now  and   then,  in   the  winter,  he   wakes, 
crawls  to  his  store  and  has  a  dinner,  and   then 
goes   to   sleep   again.     When   the  warm  days  of 
spring  come  on,  he  wakes  up  fully,  and  is  ready 
for  his  summer's  work  and  play. 


LESSON     X  XX  V  I  I  I.  —  (Continued.)         1O7 


5.  When  the  squirrel  eats  a  nut,  he  takes  it  in 
his  paws,  sits  up  straight,  with  his  tail  curled  over 
his  back,  and  nips  off  the  shell  in  little  bites,  turn- 
ing it  about  as  easily  as  we  could  with  our  hands. 

6.  The  squirrels  that  we  see  most  often  are  the 
little  chattering  red  squirrel,  and  the  gray  squirrel, 
which  is  about  twice  as  large.     In  the  West  and 
South,  a  large  squirrel,  that  is  partly  red  and  partly 
gray,  is  called  a  fox-squirrel.     All  these  squirrels 
have  fine  little  rounded  ears,  and  large  eyes,  so 
placed  that  they  can  look  all  around. 

7.  The  English  squirrel  is  most  like  our  red 
squirrel.     It   is   of   the   same   color,  but  a   little 
larger,  and  has  pointed  ears,  with  a  long  tuft  of 
hair  standing  up  from  the  top. 

8.  The  teeth  of  the  squirrel  grow,  and  he  wears 
them  off  by  gnawing  nuts.     If,  when  not  in  his 
winter's  sleep,  he  should  stop  gnawing  something 
hard  for  a  week  or  two,  his  teeth  would  become 
so  long  that  he  could  not  use  them  again. 


LESSON     XXXIX. 


109 


THE  FLYING  SQUIRREL. 

1.  HERE  we 
have  the  most 
curious  squir- 
rel of  all — one 
that  can  fly  or 
sail  through 
the  air.  It  is 
about  the  size 
of  the  common 
red  squirrel, 
and  nearly  of 
the  same  color, 
but  lighter 
upon  the  lower  part  of  its  body. 

2.  It  has  a  loose  skin  on  each  side,  running 
from  its  fore  legs  to  its  hind  ones.     When  it  is  at 
rest,  or  when  it  walks  and  runs,  this  skin  hangs 
like  a  ruffle.     But  when  Mr.  Squirrel  wants  to  go 
fast,  or  on  a  long  journey,  he  scampers  to  the  top 
of  a  tree  and  spreads  out  his  legs,  drawing  the 
loose  skin  tight  like  a  sail. 

3.  He  then  gives  a  leap,  and  away  he  sails  into 
the  air,  striking  near  the  foot  of  another  tree  a 
long  distance  away.    He  runs  up  to  the  top  of  this 


11O  LESSON     XXXIX  .—(Continued.) 


tree,  and  away  he  goes  again^  so  fast  that  nothing 
can  catch  him. 

4.  As  he  sails  through  the  air,  he  falls  toward 
the  ground ;  but  he  can  carry  his  legs  and  tail  in 
such  a  way  that,  just  before  he  strikes,  he  shoots 
upward  a  little  way,  and  lands  on  a  tree,  some 
distance  above  the  ground. 

5.  The  flying  squirrel  is  covered  with  soft,  fine 
fur,  but   the  covering  of   the   flying-sail  is  finer 
than  that  of  any  other  part.     It  has  large  eyes,  for 
seeing  in  the  night.     It  sleeps  most  of  the  day, 
and  comes  out  after  sunset  in  search  of  food. 

6.  A  squirrel  makes  a  pretty  pet,  and  some- 
times it  becomes  so  tame  that  it  runs  about  like  a 
dog.     A  squirrel  was  once  found  in  its  nest  before 
its  eyes  were  opened,  and  brought  to  the  house. 

7.  It  became  very  tame,  and,  after  it  grew  up, 
it  would  watch  its  master  when  he  went  out,  and 
get  into  his  pocket,  where  it  would  stay  and  peep 
out  to  the  people  it  met. 

8.  When   they  came  to  a  country  place,  the 
squirrel  would  leap  out,  run  along  the  road,  climb 
to  the  tops  of  the  trees,  nibble  the  leaves  and  bark, 
and  then  scamper  after  his  master,  and  nestle  down 
into  his  pocket  again. 


THE  OWL. 


AN  owl  sat  in  a  hollow  tree, 

And  cried  the  whole  day  through  : 

"  I  can  not  see ;  the  sun  blinds  me. 
Ah,  what  am  I  to  do  ? " 

When  night  was  dark,  the  owl  looked  out, 
And  thought  he'd  leave  his  house : 

For  "  light,"  said  he,  "  has  come  to  me— 
I'll  go  and  catch  a  mouse." 

The  mouse  he  caught,  and  then  he  cried : 

"  What  next  am  I  to  do  ? 
The  woods  shall  ring,  I'll  sit  and  sing, 

Too-whit,  too-whit,  too-whoo  ! " 


112 


LESSON     XL. 


BO-PEEP  AND   THE  SQUIRREL. 


LITTLE  Bo-peep  said  to  her  sheep, 

"  In  the  wood  there  is  tender  grass  growing ; 
And  as  you're  so  good,  you  shall  dine  in  the  wood, 

By  the  brook  that  is  quietly  flowing." 

Then  a  squirrel  hard  by  looked  down  with  a  sigh, 
And  said,  "  Oh,  please  go  away,  ma'am ! 

The  acorns  are  mine,  and  the  nuts  too,  so  fine ; 
And  in  the  woods  always  I  play,  ma'am." 


LESSON     XL.  —  (Continued.) 


113 


Then  little  Bo-peep  at  the  squirrel  did  peep : 

"  No  harm  we  are  going  to  do,  sir ; 
My  sheep  are  not  thieves,  and,  under  the  leaves 

Of  the  wood,  there  is  room  for  us  too,  sir. 

"  But  I  wish  to  be  just :  so  here's  a  soft  crust 
Of  white  bread  of  my  mother's  own  baking ; 

And  I'll  give  you  a  slice,  which  you'll  find  very 

nice, 
If  you'll  join  us  in  our  merry-making." 


IF  you  saw  a  goat 
Buttoned  in  a  coat ; 
If  you  saw  a  rat 
Dressed  up  in  a  hat ; 
If  you  saw  a  lamb 
Take  a  slice  of  ham ; 
If  you  saw  a  bear 
Combing  out  its  hair; 
If  you  saw  an  ox 
Opening  a  box ; 
If  you  saw  a  pig 
Eat  a  nice  new  fig ; 


If  you  saw  a  mouse 
Throwing  down  a  house ; 
If  you  saw  a  stag 
Picking  up  a  rag ; 
If  you  saw  a  cow 
Make  a  pretty  bow  ; 
If  you  saw  a  fly 
Take  its  slate  and  cry— 
You  would  surely  say, 
"  What  peculiar  play  ! " 
Or  would  surely  sing, 
u  What  a  funny  thing  ! " 


114 


LESSON     XL  I. 


HOW  THE  MOLE  LOOKS. 

1.  HEEE 
we  have  the 
mole — a  very 
curious  ani- 
mal. It  is 
about  the  size 
of  a  rat,  and  is 
covered  with  a 
dark  brown 
coat  of  fine 
fur.  The  fur 

does  not  lie  back,  as  on  the  cat,  but  stands  out 

straight  from  the  body. 

2.  The  legs  of  the  mole  are  short,  and  are  so 
formed  that  it  can  not  stand  upon  them  and  raise 
its  body  from  the  ground. 

3.  The  fore  legs  are  large  and  strong,  and  each 
paw  has  five  toes,  armed  with  strong  nails.    When 
its  toes  are  together,  its  fore  paw  is  like  a  spade ; 
and  when  they  are  spread  apart,  it  is  like  a  fork. 

4.  It  has  small  ears,  which  are  out  of  sight  in 
the  fur ;  and  something  like  eyes,  also  deep  in  the 
fur,  so  that  it  can  not  see.  or  at  most  it  can  only 
tell  when  it  is  light  and  when  it  is  dark. 


LESSON     X  L  I  .  —  (Continued.}  1  1  g 


5.  Its  nose  is  pointed,  and  its   teeth   are   all 
sharp,  like  those  of  the  cat,  but  are  so  small  that 
they  look  like  the  points  of  white  needles. 

6.  What  does  this  little  blind  animal,  that  can 
only  creep  along,  do  ?  how  can  he  get  a  living  ?  and 
how  does  it  get  away  from  enemies  ? 

7.  We  see  that  all  its  limbs  are  so  small  and 
set  so  close  to  its  body  that  it  can  easily  creep 
through  small  holes.     Its  hair  stands  out,  so  that 
it  can  crawl  both  ways. 

8.  It  has  no  eyes,  because  it  lives  in  the  dark, 
and  does  not  need  to  see  to  get  its  food. 

9.  Its  nose  is  pointed  and  keen,  so  that  it  gets 
its  food  by  scent  instead  of  sight.     By  scent,  too, 
it  can  tell  when  danger  is  nigh. 

10.  Its  fur  is  fine  and  close,  so  that  it  is  able 
to  live  in  very  damp  places,  and  the  wet  does  not 
get  through  to  the  skin0 

11.  Its  ears  and  eyes  are  deep  down  in  the  fur, 
so  that,  in  crawling  through  a  hole,  no  dirt  or  dust 
can  get  into  them. 

12.  Its  teeth  are  not  chisel-shaped,  for  gnaw- 
ing, but  are  sharp  and  pointed,  like  the  teeth  of 
animals  that  live  on  flesh ;  but  they  are  so  small 
that  they  would  break  in  trying  to  eat  the  bones 
of  even  a  mouse. 


116 


LESSON     XL!  I, 


HOW  THE  MOLE    WORKS  AND   LIVES. 


_. :  "•>  -  --^— -.  -^^•'•"-•-<v-^.v^:^rr.  •-.••  •''•••'!;<• :'  ••w-:--^  '.^_U 


1.  As  the  mole  is  not  made  for  the  sunlight, 
it   must   live   below    ground.      With   its   strong 
fore  paws  it  digs  into  the  earth,  and  it  can  dig  so 
fast  that  anywhere  in  the  grass  it  will  get  out  of 
sight  in  about  a  minute. 

2.  When  it  is  above  ground  and  it  scents  any 
danger,  it  does  not  run  or  climb,  but  it  digs  ;  and, 
when  once  under  ground,  it  can  keep  out  of  the 
way  of  almost  any  enemy. 


LESSON     XLII.  —  (Continued.)  117 


3.  As  it  digs  forward,  it  pushes  the  dirt  back- 
ward, and  it  will  go  a  long  way  in  a  little  while. 
Its  hind  legs  drag  behind,  and,  as  they  have  little 
to  do,  they  are  weak. 

4.  It  digs  along  in  the  dark  when  its  keen 
little  nose  scents  a  worm  or  a  grub ;  this  it  pushes 
into  its  mouth  with  its  paw,  and  eats  in  an  instant. 

5.  The  meat  which  it  finds  below  ground  has 
no  bones ;  so  its  small  teeth  are  all  that  it  needs  to 
chew  with.     In  some  safe  place,  nearly  always  at 
the  foot   of   a  tree,  the  mole  throws  up  a  little 
mound  of  dirt,  and  in  the  middle  of  it  builds  its 
nest  of  dried  grass. 

6.  Then  it  makes  tunnels  all  around,  not  any 
one  leading  straight  up  to  the  nest.     In  the  pict- 
ure we  see  the  mole's  nest  and  the  tunnels  lead- 
ing to  it.     The  mole  drinks  a  great  deal,  and  in 
its  tunnels  it  digs  wells   where  it  can  go  down 
and  find  water. 

7.  In  the  summer  it   keeps  near  the   top   of 
the  ground  ;  but  in  winter  it  digs  down  deeper, 
to  find  grubs,  and  because  it  is  warmer. 

8.  In  digging  under  ground,  the  mole  destroys 
the  roots  of  grass  and  plants,  and  does  some  dam- 
age ;  but  it  does  much  more  good,  by  destroying 
the  grubs  which  live  on  the  roots  of  plants. 


118 


LESSON     XLIII. 


ABOUT  THE  PORCUPINE. 

1.  WE  find  in 
the    woods  a  curi- 
ous  animal    called 
a  hedgehog,  but 
which    is   really  a 
porcupine.     The 
hedgehog  is  found 
in     Europe,     and 
lives  upon  insects; 
the  porcupine  lives 
in  quite  a  different 
way. 

2.  The    porcu- 
pine is  a  little  larger  than  the  rabbit.    It  has  short 
legs,  sharp  claws,  and  a  short,  broad  tail.     Like 
the  rabbit,  it  has  chisel-teeth  for  gnawing. 

3.  It  climbs  easily ;  but  it  moves  slowly,  both 
in  walking  and  climbing.     Its  food  is  mostly  the 
inside  bark  of  trees.     It  climbs  a  tree,  and  seldom 
leaves  until  it  has  stripped  off  most  of  the  bark. 

4.  As  it  can  not  run,  it  has  a  curious  way  of 
defending  itself.    Besides  a  coat  of  warm,  soft  fur, 
its  back  and  sides  are  covered  thick  with  sharp- 
pointed  quills,  from  two  to  three  inches  long. 


LESSON     XLIII.  —(Continued.)  1  19 


5.  When  the  porcupine   is  feeding   or  going 
about,  these   quills  lie  back  flat,  like  hair;   but 
when  there  is  any  danger,  they  stand  out  straight. 
Upon  the  approach  of  an  enemy,  it  folds  up  its 
paws,  curls  its  head  under  its  fore  legs,  and  shows 
itself  a  bundle  of  sharp  quills. 

6.  Should  a  dog  or  hungry  wolf  then  snap  at 
it,  the  quills  get  into  his  mouth,  and  stick  there. 
Each  quill  has  barbs  like  a  fish-hook,  and  many 
an  animal  has  died  from  the  quills  working  into 
its  flesh  after  having  tried  to  bite  a  porcupine. 

7.  The  porcupine  can  also  throw  up  its  back 
or  strike  a  heavy  blow  with  its  tail,  driving  the 
quills  into  the  flesh  of  its  enemies. 

8.  The  quills  easily  break  off  at  their  blunt 
end,  and  they  grow  like  the  hair ;  so  the  porcu- 
pine has  a  plenty  for  use  at  all  times. 

9.  When  men  hunt  the  porcupine,  they  take 
care  not  to  get  a  blow  from  the  tail,  and  then  they 
watch  their  chance,  and  strike  the  animal  on  the 
nose  with  a  club,  which  kills  it  at  once. 

10.  The  porcupine  builds  its  nest  in   hollow 
trees.     In  the  winter  it  sleeps  most  of  the  time, 
only  coming  out  once  in  a  while  to  get  something 
to  eat. 


120 


LESSON     XLIV. 


ABOUT  THE   WOODCHUCK. 

1.  THE 
woodchuck  is 
about  twice 
the  size  of  the 
common  rab- 
bit. Its  body 
is  thick,  and  it 
has  short  legs, 
armed  with 
long,  naked 
nails. 

2.  It    has 
small,     round 

ears,  and  a  short,  bushy  tail.  It  has  a  thick  coat 
of  coarse  fur,  long  whiskers,  like  a  cat,  and  chisel- 
teeth  for  gnawing.  It  lives  upon  fruit  and  the 
leaves  of  plants,  and  is  very  fond  of  red  clover. 

3.  When  walking,  its  hind  legs  do  not  stand 
up  like  those  of  a  cat  or  dog ;  but  the  leg  up  to 
the  first  joint  comes  down  flat  upon  the  ground. 

4.  With  its  strong  claws  it  digs  a  hole  in  the 
ground  for  a  home.     It  chooses  a  soft  place  in  a 
bank,  where,  at  first,  it  can  dig  up,  so  that  it  will 
not  be  disturbed  by  water.     Its  home  has  several 


LESSON     XLIV.  —(Continued.) 


121 


entrances,  so  that,  if  pursued,  it  can  escape  by  run- 
ning in  or  out.  In  one  of  its  driest  rooms  it  makes 
its  nest  of  dried  grass ;  and  here  it  stays  in  stormy 
weather,  only  coming  out  on  pleasant  days. 

5.  Woodchucks  are  very  timid,  and,  when  they 
come  out  to  feed, 

one  sits  up  and 
keeps  watch. 
Should  it  spy 
any  danger,  it 
gives  a  kind  of 
whistle,  and  away 
they  all  scud  to 
their  holes. 

6.  When  winter  comes,  the  woodchuck  rolls 
himself  up  in  his  nest  and  goes  to  sleep  until 
spring.     He  is  very  fat  when  he  takes  to  his  bed 
in  the  fall,  but  is  lean  when  he  comes  out  ready 
for  his  next  summer's  work. 

7.  The  prairie-dog,  found  upon  the  plains  in 
the  West,  is  very  much  like  a  small  woodchuck. 
In  a  prairie-dog  town  there  are  hundreds  of  holes 
close  together.     When  we  go  to  look  at  them,  we 
see  a  little  head  at  every  door-way,  which  dives 
out  of  sight  as  we  come  near.     Owls  and  rattle- 
snakes live  in  the  same  holes  with  the  prairie-dogs. 


122  LESSON     XLV. 


MRS.  BRINDLE'S  COWSLIP  FEAST. 

A  cow  lived  in  a  pleasant  field, 
Where  cowslips  bloomed  in  spring. 

Said  she,  "  I  think  a  cowslip  feast 
Would  be  a  pleasant  thing." 

So  Mrs.  Brindle  sent  a  calf 

Around  the  farm,  to  say 
That  she  should  give  a  cowslip  feast 

At  four  o'clock  that  day. 

At  four  o'clock  she  sat  in  state 

Beside  the  flowing  brook ; 
The  cowslips,  with  their  golden  heads, 

Did  most  inviting  look. 

The  brindle  calf  in  apron  stood 
To  ope  the  five-barred  gate ; 

And  then  his  mother  said  that  he 
Upon  the  guests  must  wait. 

The  company  at  length  drew  near : 

First  Mrs.  Blossom  came, 
And  Mrs.  Dun,  and  Mr.  Bull, 

Who  seemed  to-day  quite  tame. 


LESSON     X  L  V  .  —  ( Continued.),  1 23 


Red,  spotted,  white,  a  goodly  band 
Of  cows  and  calves  came  nigh  ; 

And  Mr.  Donkey  said  that  he 
Would  cowslips  like  to  try. 

And  Mrs.  Mare  came  with  her  foal, 

And  Mr.  Horse  came  too, 
And  several  sheep  with  frisky  lambs, 

In  woolen  dresses  new. 

Then  Mrs.  Brindle  bade  her  guests 

The  cowslips  sweet  to  eat ; 
And  if  they  wished  to  drink,  she  said, 

The  brook  was  clear  and  sweet. 

They  ate  and  drank,  and  chatted  too ; 

And,  when  they  went  away, 
Said,  "  Thank  you  for  your  cowslip  feast, 

Dear  brindle  cow,  to-day." 


I  THOUGHT  the  sparrow's  note  from  heaven, 
Singing  at  dawn  on  the  elder  bough ; 

I  brought  him  home ;  in  his  nest,  at  even, 
He  sings  the  song,  but  it  pleases  not  now : 

For  I  did  not  bring  home  the  river  and  sky — 

He  sang  to  my  ear ;  they  sang  to  my  eye. 


124 


LESSON     X  L  VI. 


THE  FROG  AND  ITS  HOME. 

1.  HERE  is 
a  strange-look- 
ing creature— 
the  frog.  At 
first  sight  we 
would  say  that 
it  is  entirely 
unlike  all  the 
animals  we 
have  studied ; 
but  let  us  look 
a  little  closer. 

2.  We  see  that,  like  all  the  others,  this  little 
friend  of  ours  has  a  body  with  a  head,  four  limbs, 
two  eyes,  two  ears,  a  nose,  and  a  mouth. 

3.  But  how  curious  it  is  in  form !     Its  body  is 
short  and  round;  its  head  is  set  on  to  its  body 
without  any  neck ;  and  its  limbs  are  placed  on  its 
sides,  so  that  it  can  not  stand,  but  only  squat. 

4.  It  has  large  staring  eyes,  that  can  look  about 
on   all  sides ;   and  when  it  opens  its  mouth  its 
whole  head  seems  to  split  apart. 

5.  It  has  webbed  feet,  and  can  swim  well  in 


LESSON     X  L  V  I  .—(Continued.} 


126 


the  water.     It  has  no  teeth,  but  lives  upon  grubs 
and  flies  and  other  insects. 

6.  When  a  fly  comes  within  reach,  the   frog 
does  not  jump  at  it,  but  just  darts  out  its  long 
tongue,    covered   with 

slime,  so  quickly  that 
the  fly  is  caught  before 
it  has  time  to  stir. 

7.  It    lives     both 
upon  land  and  in  the 
water.      When   in  the 
water,  it  can  open  and 
shut   its   webbed    feet 
like  a  fan,  and  so  can 
swim  rapidly. 

8.  When  upon  the 
land,  it  can  not  walk  or 

run,  but  it  gets  along  by  hops. 

feet,  and  suddenly  straightens  out  its  hind  legs, 

and  away  it  goes  in  a  great  leap. 

9.  When  the  cold  weather  comes,  the  frog 
crawls  into  some  hole,  or  under  the  bank  near  the 
water,  and  goes  to  sleep  for  the  winter. 

10.  The  cold  does  not  kill  him,  and,  when  the 
warm  spring  days  come,  he  wakes  up  and  comes 
out  ready  for  the  work  which  he  is  to  do. 


Frog's  Head,  showing  Tongue 

It  sits  on  its  hind 


126 


LESSON     X  LVI  I. 


FROM  TADPOLE  TO  FROG. 


1.  IN  the  spring  of  the  year  the  frog  lays  its 
eggs   in   the   water.     These   eggs  are  small  and 
round,  but  soon  swell  out  to  the  size  of  a  large 
pea.     Each  egg  has  in  it  a  black  speck,  not  much 
larger  than  a  pin's  head. 

2.  This  speck  grows,  and  in  the  course  of  a 
few  days  out  comes  a  tadpole  about  half  an  inch 


LESSON     XLVII  .  —  (Continued.}  1 27 

long.     Now,  a  tadpole  has  a  round  head,  with  a 
flat  tail  on  one  side,  but  no  body. 

3.  The  tadpole  can  swim  with  its  tail,  like  a 
fish.     On  each  side  of  the  head  is  a  small  tuft  of 
soft  pink  threads.     These  are  gills,  through  which 
it  can  breathe  the  air  which  is  in  the  water. 

4.  Then  the  body  grows,  and  in  a  short  time 
two  little  legs  come  out  right  where  the  tail  joins 
the  body.     In  a  few  days  more  two  other  legs 
come  out  just  back  of  the  eyes,  and  then  we  have 
a  tadpole  with  four  legs. 

5.  But  now  another  change  takes  place.    Lungs 
for  breathing  air  begin  to  grow  inside,  and  the 
gills   become   smaller.     For   a   time   the  tadpole 
breathes  partly  in  the  water,  with  his  gills,  and 
partly  in  the  air,  with  his  lungs. 

6.  Next  the  gills  dry  up,  and  then  it  comes  to 
the  top  of  the  water  to  breathe ;  and  it  looks  very 
much  like  a  frog,  except  that  it  has  a  tail. 

7.  At  last  the  tail  shrinks  away,  and  the  tad- 
pole has  become  a  perfect  frog.     In  hot  weather 
all  these  changes  take  place  in  a  few  weeks ;  but 
when  it  is  cold,  they  take  a  longer  time. 

8.  The  frog,  when  full  grown,  can  live  on  the 
land  or  in  the  water.     It  can  stay  under  water 
some  time,  but  must  come  to  the  top  to  breathe. 


128 


LESSON     X  LV  I  I  I. 


MORE  ABOUT  FROGS. 

1.  EACH 
Mrs.  Frog  lays 
about     one 
thousand  eggs, 
and  if  they  all 
hatched    and 
grew,    every 
swampy  coun- 
try would  soon 
be  overrun 
with  frogs. 

2.  But  fish, 

birds,  and  serpents  eat  them  in  such  numbers  that 
they  only  about  hold   their  own   year  by  year. 
Some  kinds  of  frogs  are  also  found  to  be  good 
food  for  men,  and  are  caught  for  that  purpose. 

3.  Frogs  are  lively  and  noisy  in  the  first  warm 
days  of  spring  and  summer.     The  little  peeping 
frogs  keep  up  their  shrill  music  all  night  and  day, 
and  with  it  we  hear  the  deep  voice  of  the  bull- 
frog, like  a  bass-drum  heard  at  a  distance. 

4.  The  bull-frog  is  the  largest  of  the  frog  kind. 
It  eats  worms,  insects,  and  snails,  and  sometimes 
it  even  eats  its  own  tadpoles. 


LESSON     XLVIII  .  —  (Continued.) 


129 


5.  In  summer,  we  hear  among  the  trees  a  shrill 
kind  of  whirring  sound,  which  is  kept  up  for  a 
long      time 

without  any 
pause.  This 
is  the  song  of 
the  tree-frog, 
sometimes 
called  the  tree- 
toad. 

6.  This  is 
a    very   small 
frog.      It  is 
born     in    the 
water,    like 
other     frogs ; 

but  when  it  comes  out  in  the  spring,  it  climbs  into 
the  trees  and  lives  there. 

7.  Its  feet  spread  out  into  broad,  flat  toes,  from 
the  bottom  of  which  conies  out  a  sticky  fluid.    By 
means  of  these  toes,  which  partly  act  as  suckers, 
the  frog  can  crawl  along  on  the  under  side  of 
branches  without  falling. 

8.  The  color  of  the  tree-frog  is  so  much  like 
that  of  the  wood  it  clings  to  that  it  can  not  be 
seen  unless  we  look  very  closely  for  it. 

9 


130 


LESSON     X  L  I  X  , 


THE  FRIENDLY  TOAD. 

1.  THE  toad, 
which  we  find 
in  our  gardens 
and  yards  slow- 
ly c  r  a  w  1  i  n  g 
about,  or  mak- 
ing short  hops, 
is  a  cousin  of 
the  frog,  and 
is  made  very 
much  like  him. 

2.  The  frog  has  a  smooth  skin ;  but  the  skin 
of  the  toad  is  thick,  and  is  covered  with  warts.     It 
has  a  larger  mouth  than  the  frog,  and,  on  the 
whole,  it  can  not  be  called  handsome. 

3.  The  toad,  like  the  frog,  is  usually  born  in 
the  water,  and  is  at  first  a  tadpole.     When  it  loses 
its  gills  and  tail,  it  comes  out  of  the  water  and 
lives  upon  the  land,  until  it  goes  into  the  water 
again  in  the  spring  to  lay  its  eggs. 

4.  Sometimes  the  toad  can  not  reach  the  water 
at  the  proper  time,  and  then  the  tadpole  changes 
to  a  perfect  toad  soon  after  it  is  hatched. 


LESSON     X  L  I  X  .  —  (Continued.)  131 


5.  The  toad  feeds  on  insects,  and  is  very  useful 
about  the  garden,  as  it  picks  off  the  grubs  and 
beetles  that  destroy  the  fruit  and  flowers. 

6.  It   eats    only   living   insects,  and  it   never 
chases  its  prey.     It  will  sit  motionless  until  a  fly 
or  other  insect   comes  within  reach,  and  then  it 
darts  out  its  tongue  so  rapidly  that  the  little  vic- 
tim can  not  escape. 

7.  It  swallows  its  food  whole.    When  it  seizes 
a  worm,  it  crams  fold  after  fold  into  its  mouth 
with  its  fore  feet,  and,  when  all  is  in,  it  gives  one 
great  gulp,  and  the  worm  disappears  down  the 
wide  throat.     The  toad  sleeps  in  some  hole,  or  out- 
of-the-way  place,  during  the  day ;  but  it  comes  out 
about  sunset  and  searches  for  food  all  night. 

8.  Every  few  months  the  toad  gets  a  new  coat. 
Its  old  skin  gets  hard  and  dry,  and  cracks  open  on 
the  back,  showing  a  new  skin  under  it.    Then  the 
toad  pulls  his  head  out,  and  pushes  the  old  skin 
oft*  his  body  and  legs.    When  he  has  got  it  all  off, 
he  rolls  it  up  into  a  ball  and  swallows  it. 

9.  Toads  live  thirty  or  forty  years,  and  often 
become  quite  tame.      They  will  come  at   a   call, 
and  they  seem  to  enjoy  a  gentle  scratching.  When 
held  by  the  legs,  they  will  catch  the  flies  brought 
within  their  reach  as  readily  as  when  at  liberty. 


132  LESSON     L. 


THE  SNAIL  AND  ITS  HOUSE. 

1.  IN  sum- 
mer, when 
walking  out 
in  country 
places,  we  oft- 
en find  pretty 

little  snail-shells.     Some  of  these  are  empty,  and 

some  have  a  live  snail  within. 

2.  The  shell  is  the  snail's  house.     It  is  a  queer 
house,  as  it  grows  on  him,  as  hair  grows  on  a  cat ; 
and  he  carries  it  about  on  his  back  when  he  walks. 

3.  The  snail  lives  upon  plants.     In  the  day  he 
finds  some  safe  place  under  a  stone,  or  in  a  hole, 
draws  himself  into  his  house,  and  goes  to  sleep. 
In  the  night  he  comes  out  and  feeds. 

4.  When  we  catch  a  snail,  and  wish  to  look  at 
him,  we  find  that  he  has  gone  into  his  house,  where 
we  can  not  see  him. 

5.  To  make  him  come  out,  put  a  plate  in  warm 
water  until  it  is  about  as  warm  as  the  hand.    Then 
dip  the  shell  into  the  water,  and  put  it  on  the 
warm,  wet  plate. 

6.  Then  the  snail  will  come  out.    First,  he  will 
put  his  head  out.     Then  from  the  front  part  of 


LESSON     L  .  —(Continued.)  1  33 


his  head  he  will  put  out  four  soft  horns,  two  long 
ones  and  two  short  ones. 

7.  His  eyes  are  in  the  ends  of  his  long  horns. 
When  the  horns  are  out,  if  you  watch  close,  you 
will  see  the  eyes  move  up  to  the  tips. 

8.  Next  comes  the  body,  which  is  soft,  long, 
and  flat.     The  shell  is  on  the  back,  nearer  the  tail 
than  to  the  head.    It  has  a  spiral  twist,  as  is  shown 
in  the  picture. 

9.  The   snail's    body,   where    it    touches   the 
ground  when  he  moves,  is  called  the  foot.     When 
he  moves,  the  head  reaches  forward  first  and  takes 
a  firm  hold,  then  the  other  parts  come  forward  in 
turn,  the  tail  last. 

10.  The  snail  can  not  crawl  over  a  dry  place ; 
so,  when  he  moves,  a  thick  fluid  comes  out  of  his 
foot,  moistening  the  surface  as  he  passes  along. 

11.  As  he  must  be  saving  of  this  fluid,  in  dry 
weather  he  stays  at  home  most  of  the  time,  and 
comes  out  only  when  it  is  wet  enough  to  crawl 
about. 

12.  When  the  cold  weather  comes,  the  snail 
crawls  away  to  some  quiet  place,  usually  under  a 
log  or  a  stone,  draws  himself  into  his  house,  makes 
a  door  to  keep  out  the  cold,  and  goes  to  sleep 
until  spring. 


134 


LESSON     LI. 


THE  FLY  AND  ITS  WAYS. 

1.  HEBE  is  one  of 
our  friends   that  we 
know  very  well — the 
common  house-fly.    It 
is   here  drawn  large 
on   purpose,   so   that 
we  can  better  see  how 
it  is  made. 

2.  The   fly  is   an 

insect.     Its  body  is  divided  into  three  parts  ;  and 
it  has  three  pairs  of  legs.     Upon  its  head  are  two 
large  eyes,  each  of  which  is  made  up  of  about  two 
thousand  small  eyes.     When  we  look  through  a 
glass  that  makes  things  look  large,  we  can  see  and 
count  these  little  eyes  of  the  fly. 

3.  Its  feet  are  made  in  such  a  way  that  they 
will  stick  wherever  it  places  them,  so  that  it  can 
crawl  up  the  walls  of  the  house,  or  on  the  'ceiling, 
with  its  back  down. 

4.  The  fly's  wings  are  light  and  thin,  and  made 
up  of  fine  network.     It  has  no  jaws  or  teeth  ;  and, 
instead  of  lips,  it  has  a  tube,  or  trunk,  through 
which  it  sucks  up  its  food,  as  we  can  suck  milk 
through  a  straw. 


LESSON     LI.  —  ( Continued) 


1S& 


5.  When  a  fly  lights  on  a  lump  of  sugar,  it 
puts  out  its  trunk,  and  lets  fall  a  drop  of  fluid, 
which    is   clear    like  water.      This 

moistens  the  sugar,  and  then  the  fly 
sucks  it  up. 

6.  The   fly   keeps   himself   very 
clean.     After  each  meal  it  brushes 
its  head,  first  on  one  side,  and  then 
on  the  other,  with  its  first  pair  of 
legs.    Then  it  will  rub  the  two  legs 
together  to  get  off  the  dirt. 

7.  The  fly  lays   its  eggs   in  the 
kind  of  food  its  young  can  eat.     In 
a   short   time   a   little   white    grub 
hatches  out,  which  does  nothing  but 
eat  until  it  is  of  full  size. 

8.  Then   its  skin  becomes  hard,  and  shrinks. 
It  lies  still,  and  does  not  eat  anything  for  several 
days ;  but,  inside  its  hard  shell,  wings  are  grow- 
ing, and  by-and-by  the  shell  cracks  open,   and  a 
full-grown  fly  comes  out. 

9.  The  blue-bottle  fly  has  but  two  wings,  while 
the  common  house-fly  has  four.     This  fly  lays  its 
eggs  wherever  it  can  find  putrid  meat,  and  the 
grubs  which  hatch  out  eat  it  all  up,  and  so  save 
us  from  evil  odors  and  from  breathing  foul  air. 


A  Fly's  Leg, 
magnified. 


136 


LESSON     LI  I. 


THE  ANIMALS'  BALL. 


'"We'll  dance  all   night/ 
Cried  the  ants  with  delight." 


"  WE'LL  dance  all 
night," 

Cried  the  ants,  with  de- 
light. 

"  Pray  tell  me  why  ? " 

Inquired  a  fly. 

"  Because  it's  nice," 

Explained  the  mice. 

"  Oh,  very  well ! " 


Laughed  the  gazelle. 
"  Yes ;  but  where  ? " 
Demanded  a  hare. 
"  Somewhere  near," 
Suggested  the  deer. 
"Why  not  here?" 
Crowed  chanticleer. 
"Yes,  this  will  do," 
Said  the  kangaroo. 


LESSON     L  I  I  .  —(Continued.} 


137 


"  '  Don't  step  on  my  tail ! ' 
Pleaded  the  whale." 


"  Let's  be  smart ! " 
Remarked  the  hart. 
"  Fetch  our  gloves," 
Cried  the  doves. 
"  And  my  glass," 
Brayed  the  ass. 
"  Where's  my  brooch  ? " 
Howled  the  roach. 
"  Curl  my  back  hair," 
Ordered  the  mare. 
"  Don't  step  on  my  tail ! " 
Pleaded  the  whale. 
"  Please  take  care  ! " 


Begged  the  hare. 

"  Oh,  my  cravat ! " 

Screamed  a  gnat. 

"  I've  lost  my  wig," 

Sobbed  the  pig. 

"  Give  me  a  chain  ! " 

Cried  the  crane. 

"  My  shirt's  too  narrow," 

Complained  a  sparrow. 

"  What  will  you  do  ? " 

Sighed  the  kangaroo0 

"  None  fine  as  I," 

Remarked  the  fly. 


138 


LESSON     L  I  I  .  —  ( Continued.) 


"  '  I'll  play  the  horn, 
Said  the  unicorn." 


"  Who  will  play 

For  us  to-day  ? " 

"  I'll  play  the  horn," 

Said  the  unicorn. 

"  Who  will  pipe  ? " 

Asked  the  snipe. 

«  Why,  I ! " 

Said  a  fly. 

"  And  I'll  play  the  harp," 

Added  the  carp. 

"  We  are  all  ready  now," 

Spoke  out  the  cow. 


"  Then  form  a  row," 
Said  the  buffalo. 
"  And  now  we'll  dance," 
Again  said  the  ants. 
Then  danced  the  cuckoo 
With  the  kangaroo, 
The  cat  with  the  rat, 
The  cow  with  the  sow, 
The  dog  with  the  hog, 
The  snail  with  the  whale, 
The  wren  with  the  hen, 
The  bear  with  the  hare, 


LESSON     L  I  I  .  —(Continued.) 


139 


The  cow  with  the  sow." 


The  lark  with  the  shark, 
The  ram  with  the  lamb, 
The  fox  and  the  mare 
Made  the  last  pair. 
"  Now  we  will  feast," 
Remarked  a  beast. 
"Take  an  ice!" 
Begged  the  mice. 
"  Do  drink  this  wine," 
Invited  the  swine. 
"Not  just  now," 
Objected  the  sow. 
"  Let's  have  some  beer," 
Said  the  deer. 


"  But  I  prefer  cider," 
Whispered  a  spider. 
"  You  must  not  think 
So  much  about  drink," 
Said  the  cow 
With  a  bow. 
"  It's  a  bad  habit," 
Shouted  the  rabbit. 
At  last  the  fly, 
With  a  tear  in  his  eye, 
Gave  his  arm  to  the  lark 
And  went  off  in  the  dark. 
Away  in  a  trice 
Scampered  the  mice. 


14O 


LESSON     LIT.  —  (Continued.} 


The  rat  donned  his  hat.' 


Then  the  skate 
Said,  "Tislate." 
"  I  must  go  now," 
Remarked  the  sow. 
"  It  is  too  soon," 
Growled  a  baboon. 
"  Not  a  bit,  not  a  bit," 
Chirped    a    little    tom- 
tit. 

And  all  the  rest 
Agreed  it  was  best, 


To  say  good-by, 

And  homeward  hie. 

So  the  cow 

Made  her  bow, 

The  rat  donned  his  hat, 

The  whale  fetched  her 

veil ; 

"  Now,  all  farewell," 
Sighed  the  gazelle. 
Farewell,  echoed  all 
At  the  animals'  balL 


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JEVONS.  F.  R.  S. 

Natural  Resources  of  the  Uni 
Physiology.       M.  FOSTER,    M.  D.,  j          ted  States.    J  H.  PATTOX,  A.  M. 
F.  R.  S. 

HISTORY    PRIMERS. 

Edited  by  J.  R.  GREEN,  M.  A.,  Examiner  in  the  School  of  Modern  History  at 
Oxford. 


Greece.    C.  A.  FYFFE,  M.  A. 
Rome.    M.  CBEIGHTON,  M.  A. 
Europe.    E.  A.  FREEMAN,  D.  C.  L. 
Old  Greek  Life.    J.  P.  MAHAFFY, 
M.A. 


Roman  Antiquities.    Prof.  A.  S. 

WlLKINS. 

Geography.         GEORGE       GROVE, 

F.  R.  G.  S. 
France.    CHARLOTTE  M.  YONGE. 


LITERATURE     PRIMERS. 
Edited  by  J.  R.  GREEN,  M.  A. 

English  Grammar.     R.  MORRIS,   ;  Greek    Literature.      Prof.    R.  C. 

LL.  D.  JEBB. 

English    Literature.     Rev.  STOP-   |  English  Grammar  Exercises. 

FORD  A.  BROOKE,  M.  A.  R.  MORRIS,  LL.D.,  and  H.  C.  Bow- 

Philology.    J.  PEILE,  M.  A.  EN,  M  A. 

Classical    Geography.        M.    F.      Homer.      Right  Hon.  W.  E.  GLAD- 

TOZER.  STONE. 

Shakespeare.    Prof.  E.  DOWDEN.        English   Composition.     Prof.  J. 
Studies  in  Bryant.     J.  ALDEN.  NICHOL. 

(Others  in  preparation.) 

The  object  of  these  primers  is  to  convey  information  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  make  it  both  intelligible  and  interesting  to  very  young  pupils,  and  so  to  dis- 
cipline their  minds  a?  to  incline  them  to  more  systematic  after-studies.  The 
woodcuts  which  illustrate  them  embellish  and  explain  the  text  at  the  same  time, 


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